


You Owe Me

by TiffsRevenge



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: A bunch of idiots that apparently run a city, Achievement City, Eventual Smut, F/F, F/M, Fake AH Crew, Freeform, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Gavin-centric, Hand Jobs, Heist, I Don't Even Know, I guess it could be classed, Immortal Fake AH, Immortal Fake AH Crew, Implied Relationships, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Major Character Injury, Mild Smut, Minor Character Death, Minor Injuries, Minor Violence, Multi, Past Drug Addiction, Past Lives, Sexual Content, Slow Build, Stupidity, Suicidal Thoughts, Things To Do In GTAV, Violence, past suicidal acts, pretty much everyone fucks, slight reference to:
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-19
Updated: 2016-02-19
Packaged: 2018-04-15 13:59:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 29
Words: 107,780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4609383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TiffsRevenge/pseuds/TiffsRevenge
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Geoff Ramsey is pretty much a God.<br/>Running Achievement City isn’t an easy job, but when you’ve had centuries to watch everything grow and change you learn the ropes and with the growing number of valuables and most wanted people in the world behind him, the addition of immortality makes him practically indestructible.</p><p>So what would happen if someone chose to play a game, not just with the Ramsey empire but also the hearts and minds of those that he loves and trusts as well?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Everything hurt. His head rang, his limbs felt like lead, he felt like he had a hole through the middle of his chest and like his lungs were full of steel. If he stretched his fingers he could feel the cold gritty floor beneath him, florescent lighting beating down on his eyelids as he turned his head away from them. Gavin’s cheek hit something on the floor, it was sticky and cold and smelt sickeningly metallic. Now that he thought about it, wherever he was it was filled with the stench of copper and smoke, He opened his eyes sitting up quickly with a gasp as he grabbed his chest, hand passing straight through his ripped shirt to a smooth hollow in his chest hair. As he pulled his hand away he saw that his shirt was soaked in deep red, almost brown blood, as were his pants and floor in which he sat.

The memories hit him like a freight train as he fought the urge to thrown up. He’d be at work, talking with one of the crew leaders about their latest job and how well it had gone despite being in Ramsey’s territory. Then there’d been and explosion at the front and rear doors, Gavin had barely had time to stand and grab a gun before the first shots were being fired and around two dozen faceless men filled the room, taking down everything in sight. He’d managed to shoot a few, but they were all wearing body armour and shooting to kill only knocked them back a couple steps. Not knowing what else to do as his team fell he’d ran, slipping from the room with several guys after him.  
He thought he’d given them the slip when he ran in to the back of someone, the impact knocking him to the floor and leaving him staring up at the blank eyes of a skull mask. The man had raised his gun then; a sawn off shot gun pointed straight at his chest. He should be dead.

Gavin pushed himself up, leaning against the wall and focused on breathing which wasn’t easy with everything tasting of copper around him. Then he heard it, a small muffled hum at first but growing in to a cat wail of ‘Linger’ as it came closer and Geoff Ramsey stepped from around the corner.

“Hey look who’s finally awake!” he greeted, walking toward Gavin as he tried to shuffle down the wall, tripping over his own feet as they stuck to the ground slightly and sending him to the ground.

Geoff was at his back now, kneeling and resting a gentle hand on his shoulder somehow holding him in place as he spoke softly.

“Hey, hey, don’t rush, dying and being brought back takes a lot out of you,” his voice was calm and normal sounding despite it’s context. Brought back! So he had died, he’d died and yet somehow he was here now, breathing and trying not to panic while the leader of the crew that killed him was rubbing circles on his back?

“H… How… The… The shot? I was shot!” he yelled, his voice cracking slightly as he stared at the ground. He’d luckily fallen in patch of flooring that wasn’t sticky with what he was slowly realising was his own blood.

“Yeah sorry about that, I tried to get them to take you alive but I guess you spooked Ryan… Shoots before thinking that one, doesn’t half take it out of you when you’ve got to rebuild an entire chest cavity,” Geoff was rambling, rambling about Gavin’s chest cavity and how it had indeed been blown to shreds by the creep in the skull mask, apparently named Ryan, with a fucking shot gun! Gavin fought back a string of gags, his muscles tensing beneath Geoff’s hand where it was still rubbing his shoulder lightly.

“Anyway, you’re back now and Michael’s got this place ready to blow so we should probably move. Ain’t no one coming back if I’m dead,” Geoff laughed as he stood up and stretched turning back down the corridor the way he’d come before realising that Gavin wasn’t following, “well are you coming or not?”

Gavin stared at him, still unsure of what was going on. Was he dreaming? Was he stuck in some alternate dimension that swallowed him up when he got shot?

“Coming where?” he asked, his voice hoarse and croaky.

“Back to base you idiot, you’re part of my crew now. I brought you back so you owe me, come on,” Geoff was joking, but there was an undertone of seriousness to it as he disappeared from view.

Gavin knew he didn’t really have another option. Follow Geoff Ramsey to his base full of the most notorious killers and idiots in the country, or stay here and get blown up?

Pushing himself to his feet he stumbled quickly after Geoff jumping out of his skin as he almost ran in to guy rounding the corner.

“Knew you’d make the right choice, come on,” Geoff was smiling now, broad and smug beneath his moustache as he clapped and hand on Gavin’s back; looping the arm around his shoulders and pulling him quickly through the building. Gavin fought to keep his eyes straight and not let them linger on the corpses of his former team mates as they lay dead and bloodied around the converted warehouse, puddles of blood sticky and drying beneath them.

\-----

Michael was sick of waiting, the building had been ready to blow for almost an hour and Geoff was still inside fucking about and waiting for the tech kid to wake up.

“Why the fuck did you have to shoot him in the chest Ryan? Seriously, you couldn’t have just maimed the guy?” he yelled at Ryan who was leaning casually against one of the cars, his mask still on hiding his face.

Ryan smirked, “There’s five dollars in the last hour, you seriously need to tone it down dude,” Michael stared at him, his fists tight by his sides as Ryan brought up the swear jar… again. They’d seriously need a new one soon, preferable plastic so he couldn't ' _accidentally_ ' drop it again.  
“Anyway I could’ve shot him the head, then we would have been here all night,” he said with a shrug not really bothered by the time they’d been waiting. Sure he was hot and slightly sticky but it had been a good fire fight, and hey, they’d get their prize eventually.

As Michael starred huffing again, fighting the urge to punch Ryan’s smug skull face as a loud shout came from behind them.

“Hey fuckers, it’s good to blow!” Geoff yelled, striding through the front doors and tugging a very lanky and pale guy with him.

“Why doesn’t Geoff get a fucking swear jar, he swears just as much as me” Michael grumbled turning back to his case on the bonnet of the car.

“That’s six,” he heard Ryan chuckle as he opened the driver’s side door and climbed in.

Michael narrowed his eyes at him through the windscreen before turning his attention to the multitude of switches and lights in front of him. He could hear Geoff’s confident footsteps beside clumsy scraps behind him as he finished up, watching the new guy be dragged past him and half shoved in the back seat.

“Wish to do the honours?” Michael asked holding the detonator out to Geoff.

“No it’s your baby, I already got what I came for,” he winked at Michael patting him on the shoulder before walking around to the passenger side door and opening it. Michael shrugged turning to face the building as he flicked the switch.

The whole back of the building erupted in to fire as it blew forward and Michael only spared seconds to watch it before he grabbed his case a jumped in the back of the car beside the new guy, Ryan quickly taking off down the road as the front of the building was consumed by fire and disintegrated. Being immortal was one thing but getting hit by building shrapnel still fucking hurt.

\-----

The first few minutes’ drive away from the bomb site were awkward to say the least. Geoff was sat happily humming to himself while Ryan stayed silent, his eye’s glued to the road but flicking up every few seconds to eye up the new guy.

Michael could tell the new kid was nervous, he wouldn’t stop fucking with his mop of hair that seemed to defy gravity and the bouncing of his leg was making the backseats squeak suggestively.

“Holy fuck will you stop!” he yelled eventually slamming his hand on top of the guy's thigh. The new guy stared at him as he flinched slightly against the door, his stupid fucking doe eyes staring at Michael.

“Michael, no need for that, the kids only just come back,” Geoff tutted, “and that’s another dollar in the jar.” Michael groaned, a mumbled ‘For fuck sake’ leaving his lips before he could stop it.

“Eight dollars, damn Michael are you planning on making it to ten this evening?” Ryan laughed, catching Michael’s eye in the rear view mirror. Michael scrunched up his face, slouching in his seat and folding his arms atop his chest. He was vaguely aware of the new guy’s smirk beside him as he took in the atmosphere of jokes slowly filling the car, but hey at least his leg had stopped fucking bouncing.

“Sorry you got lumped in the back with grumpy over then kid, what’s your name?” Ryan asked, his voice light and friendly causing a weird contrast between his actual personality and the terrifying mask that he seemed to wear constantly. The kindness in Ryan’s voice seemed to set the new guy back as well, as he stared at the back of Ryan’s seat for a moment before gathering himself.

“Erm, yeah, no don’t worry about it, I’m sure he’s nice… and Gavin,” he muttered as though Michael was sat a few centimetres from him. Michael rounded on him then.

“What the fuck do you mean ‘I’m sure he’s nice’? I’m a fucking delight!” he shot, sitting up in his seat again.

“And there we have it ladies and gentlemen! Ten dollars from Mr Michael Jones, for not being able to control his potty mouth, will he make it to twenty? Let’s watch,” Ryan boomed chuckling, his emphasised presenter voice sending Geoff in to a frenzy of giggles.

“Ryan if you don’t shut up, I swear…” Michael stared.

“Yes you do swear, an awful lot in fact,” Ryan cut off quickly.

“Jesus Ryan, salty tonight,” Geoff wheezed beside him, curling in his chair as he attempted to breath. Michael pouted again, giving up on speaking for that evening, they were almost at the base now and he already had to put ten dollars in the fucking jar, thank god they were all immortal and couldn’t read minds instead otherwise that ten dollars would be just a drip of what he had to pay every job.

\-----

Stepping inside your rival’s base is always a strange feeling when you'd been waiting for it for so long. It was even stranger to be invited inside by the team themselves and even weirder given how natural the team acted, like Gavin had been part of their team for years and hadn't just been blackmailed in to it just a few hours ago.  
Sure Gavin was part of their team now (everyone he once knew and worked with now dead and blown to pieces) but Gavin hadn’t expected them all to be so sickeningly domestic.

The base was just a converted apartment, in a regular apartment block in downtown Achievement City. There was a living room and kitchen and down the hall seemed to be other rooms, probably converted bedrooms and a bathroom since that was where Ryan quickly vanished to.

As it was Jack and Ray had taken almost everything back to base while waiting for Gavin to wake up and the place to be blown, so all the weapons they’d used that evening were already clean and set up along on of the walls close to what looked to be a briefing area; a large white board still pinned with information on Gavin and the crew he’d worked with stuck against the wall in front of a large table.

Jack was in the kitchen wiping down the counter tops while Ray was sat in the living room, is focus on the Call of Duty match in front of him. Gavin stood awkwardly, watching as the team dispersed with natural ease. Ryan made a beeline down the hall, Michael kicked off his shoes in the doorway climbing over the back of the sofa and throwing his legs over Ray, who barely seemed to notice, as Michael began scrolling through his phone. What shocked Gavin the most was Geoff’s greeting to his second in command.

There has always been rumours surrounding the team, rumours that they all fucked and if Ramsey got a hold of you you’d be forced to join in. But it still took Gavin a moment to register the soft greeting, a quick kiss the older pair shared, both speaking lowly and casting glances at Gavin as he shifted uneasily in the entrance way.

He was still glancing around the room; watching Ray pick off enemies with expert precision when two hands clapped down on his shoulders making him jump.

“You okay Gavin?” it was Ryan, only this time Gavin could see his face, the skull mask and heavy leather jacket and jeans combo swapped out for a pair of large jogging bottoms and t-shirt.  
He was handsome. Well-built with toned muscles that shifted across his arms and along the broad shoulders as he kept hold of Gavin’s thinner slightly bony shoulders, a strong jaw line that had a slight stubble and bright blue eyes that seemed endless. His hair was soft looking and brown, slightly damp from his quick shower, with lighter highlights.

“Er… yeah… I guess, strangely still alive so, um… yeah,” Gavin stammered not sure whether to make eye contact with the guy that shot him in the chest or stare at his own hands as they wrung tightly between them.

“Yeah sorry about that, you should probably change your shirt,” Ryan laughed, his eyes scanning over the bloodstained front of the shirt and still healing skin beneath as it cut through the thick hair of his chest.

Gavin shifted uneasily in his gaze and Ryan dropped his hands from his shoulders.

“Never mind changing his shirt, the guy needs a fucking shower,” Michael yelled from the couch.

“Michael, that’s thirteen bucks in the jar,” Geoff laughed as he came out of the kitchen with Jack following him behind him. Gavin still hadn’t heard the other two men speak, but Jack’s gaze was friendly and purely curious.

While Michael was grumbling and vanished down the hall, probably to grab the money he’d racked up on their trip home, Geoff turned to Gavin.

“The lads right though, you do need to shower and change, come on I’ll show you where everything is,” Geoff smiled at him and Gavin couldn’t help but smile back as he followed, Michael passing them both and disappearing in to the kitchen.

The apartment didn’t seem to end. In addition to the large living room, kitchen, and heist/dining area, it also had two bedrooms, a small office, and a fair sized shared bathroom. Geoff directed Gavin to one bedroom, stating that it was his and pointing out the few clothes he had before leading him to the bathroom next door. The base of the shower was slighting stained black around the edge, obviously from years of grime, and mirror was still steamed from Ryan’s shower.

“Ryan I fucking told you to open a window and leave the door open when you shower!” Geoff yelled, handing Gavin a couple clean towels and leaving him.

“Hey I know you guys like seeing me naked but I’ve got to have some privacy!” Gavin heard Ryan yelled back through the door. He could help the slight grin as he undressed, moving as quickly as he could despite the dull ache in his chest every time he twisted.

Gavin was thankful for the shower and clean clothes once he was back out. He’d thrown the jeans and underwear he’d been wearing in the laundry but the shirt had not been saveable and had to be binned.

He was pulling tightly as the edge of his shirt when he walked back in to the living room to find everyone splayed on the couches talking casually while Michael and Ray we’re co-oping Halo from the floor, their backs against the large sofa that Ryan had claimed while Jack and Geoff were cuddled on the smaller loveseat.

Unsure of where he fit in he stayed watching from the doorway awkwardly.

“You know can come in,” Michael called to him, his eyes still on the TV screen. Michael’s acknowledgment of his existence had the other’s turning around to look at him.

“Oh hey Gav, how was your shower?” Geoff asked casually, sitting up so he wasn’t leaning on Jack anymore.

“It was good, yeah… nice to get my own blood out my hair,” he joked, still slightly unsure as he stood at the edge of the couch that Ryan was sat on.

“Fucking hell sit down! Ryes not gonna bit you,” Michael huffed, taking his hand off the controller to grab Gavin’s shirt, pulling him sideways and back so he fell to the couch beside Ryan.

“Michael, at this rate you’re gonna be broke in a day,” Jack laughed as Michael threw the controller and stood up walking toward the kitchen to put another dollar in the already bloated jar.

Geoff shook his head, turning his attention back to Gavin.

“Anyway we should probably do some introductions, obviously you’ve already met Ryan and Michael, but this ones Ray,” he nudged the guy’s elbow with his foot causing Ray to swat at him as he almost choked on his drink, “and this ones Jack,” he clamped a hand on Jack’s thigh making him jump slightly.

“You know the business so I’m not going to bore you, you can stay here tonight and take your pick of the spare apartments in the building tomorrow, although we mostly just sleep here,” Geoff gestured between himself and Jack as he leant back against the man again, Jack wrapping an arm around his shoulder.

“Yeah sure you sleep,” Michael joked coming back out of the kitchen with a box of beer and bottle of whisky in hand, “you drink Gav?” Gavin nodded, pulling his legs to his chest as Ryan stepped over Ray and toward the kitchen. Michael quickly stole his spot handing the bottle of whisky to Geoff who looked like a child on Christmas day.

“Geoff don’t be an animal,” Ryan muttered coming back in to the living room and chucking a glass toward Geoff so it landed on his gut with a thud. He stepped over the back of the couch, squeezing himself between the arm and Michael making the younger move toward Gavin, and placing a bottle on Ray’s head who caught it quickly.

“Aww Ryan you got me malta” he laughed leaning his head back against Ryan’s knee.

Michael shifted beside Gavin, placing the box between his feet as he pulled out a couple of bottles and handed him one.

“Thanks boi,” the word slipped out before Gavin could stop it and he saw Michael stiffen slightly before shrugging it off and settling back beside him.

“No problem. Hey Ray why not let someone else have a go, your eyesights already bad enough,” Ray turned his head to glare at Michael.

“Obviously its bad if I find you attractive,” he shot back the rest of the team erupting in to ‘Ohs!’ and laughs.

“Screw you Ray,” Michael grinned pushing the other man’s shoulder with his foot.

“You will later,” Ray laughed winking and taking a drink from his bottle. That set Geoff off again, quickly dominoing until everyone was laughing even Gavin was grinning despite the slightly awkward sensation in his stomach.

“My eyes are getting tired anyway, you play Gav?” Ray asked holding the controller out to Gavin.

“Kinda, not that good,” his response ended up with him in a head-to-head match with Jack who apparently sucked at first person shooters.

The result of the match was a lot of squawking from Gavin and several swears that had the rest of the team in stitches since ‘they weren’t real words’. Gavin won in the end but lost quickly when Ray reclaimed the controller. It was almost four in the morning when they finally gave up and Geoff kicked the other out, Ray practically carrying Michael with the help of Ryan since the guy could barely stand.

Gavin had almost forgot that he was part of a new group of criminals until he watch Jack double bolt and alarm the front door and found the pistol in the drawer of his bedside cabinet.

It was weird when Gavin thought that just hours ago he’d been shot and brought back to life. Now he was lying in a comfortable double bed, the tissue on his chest almost completely healed (some areas already covering with stubble of the re-growing hair). He wasn’t quite sure what Geoff had done, he was intrigued as to how and if he’d used the power before.

‘ _Had the rest of the team been brought in to this crew the same way? Had Ramsey killed them and their teams so they had no choice to join him? How long had the others even been here?_ ’

Gavin knew he’d have to gain everyone's trust before he could start asking questions, but tonight had been a step in the right direction. They all seemed nice enough, even if they did have a couple problems with language and drinking too much.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning took Gavin a few moments to register. He had to keep reminding himself of the events that had happened.

When he first woke up he thought that the shooting and his death had all been some fucked up dream, but that was wiped clear once he opened his eyes and took in his surroundings.  
Morning light was filtering in through the window casting a cold glow around the room, the light bouncing of the mirror as he sat up and took in his reflection. Most of his chest was healed but the centre of his chest was still slightly tender and hairless, he scrubbed his hands through his hair and stretched listening to the oddly normal noises coming from the living room and kitchen. He could just about make out the sound of the television, something that sounded like the morning news filtering down the hall and through his door, as well as the muted clicks and clatters of kitchen activity. He pushed himself out of the warmth of the bedding, and moved quietly out of his door toward the bathroom to get ready.

Once he was dressed in a pair of too tight jeans and plain button down shirt, he went toward the living room.

His head was still slightly sensitive from how much he’d drank last night, remembering the friendly activity of drinking and video games that had made him forget that this crew had murdered his friends just to get him. But now everything was slightly fresher and he was ready to fight, Ramsey might be his boss now but he that didn’t mean he could trust him. Not for a long time. He told himself to keep it professional as he stepped in to the living room but that turned out to be very difficult when the richest and most powerful men in Achievement City were dressed in pyjamas and making out lazily on the couch.

Averting his eyes Gavin stepped through to the kitchen intent on finding something filled with caffeine. His clattering alerted the pair to his presence and he was surprised to find Geoff stood behind him when he turned around, his hair slightly messed up and lips shiny with a slight swell.

“Morning Gavvers, sleep alright?” he asked casually, opening a cupboard beside Gavin’s head to reveal several shelves of mugs. Gavin took one and turned to the coffee machine.

“Erm, yeah I guess so,” he shrugged adding some milk to his coffee which Geoff had placed beside him, “so what are we doing today?” he was trying to keep his voice low and professional, but that was seriously difficult when the man that killed your crew was being so fucking nice, and looking so fucking... ' _No! No! Gavin was not about to admit to himself that Geoff Ramsey, ruler of Achievement City and murderer of his former team, was cute... hot even... with messed up hair and checked pyjama bottoms. No._ '

“Well we should probably introduce you to the rest of the crew and few contacts, then we’ll probably get you used to the base; get your area set up,” Geoff said, glancing back toward the living room as a phone rang and Jack answered, “Speaking of the crew, that’s probably Ryan seeing if we’re ready to go, so I’ll leave you to your coffee.”

Gavin nodded once as Geoff left him, Jack confirming his thoughts that it was Ryan as they went back down the hall to get ready for their day ahead and leaving Gavin feeling stupid conflicted with his morals.

\-----

True to his guess Ryan showed up at Geoff’s apartment a few minutes later, followed by Ray and a very groggy looking Michael who hung in the darkest corner of the apartment with his shades on. Gavin could help but grin at the lads disgruntled look but made sure to not look directly at him since he couldn’t tell if Michael’s eyes were open or not beneath the glasses.

After a quick run-down of the plan for that day, they were all crushing in to a beat up flatbed truck that only held four in it’s interior and given Michael’s fragile state he instantly shot-gunned a back seat. Geoff was close behind him grabbing the passenger side for himself and letting Jack drive while ordering Gavin in to the other back seat, leaving Ryan and Ray to hold on in the bed of the truck which they apparently were very used to doing.

As it was, Achievement City’s weather was never overtly awful and remained dry for most of the year, however when you got toward the coast the winds turned icy; forced you to pull your jacket tight. Luckily for Ryan and Ray though the extra compound and offices weren’t far just a few blocks north, close to the airport.

The car ride was filled with Geoff rambling information about the crew and the variety of bases and intelligence he had around Achievement City, and Gavin couldn’t help but feel like it was mentioned as a deterrent to keep him from running away. Apparently the main crew, Geoff, Jack, Ryan, Michael, Ray and now Gavin operated primarily from the apartment block, but the rest of the B-Team and BTS crews worked around Achievement City.

The main location was the offices they were visiting today, a large skyscraper filled with the best of the best. The four lower floors were a mix of garages and custom shops, while everything above that was filled with the security that saw everyone and anyone in Achievement City and made sure nothing went on with their knowing.  
There were groups specialising in intelligence and information that could find every detail about anyone they wished, mercenary links and connections that could get ahold of every criminal and hired hand, and not to forget to large money empire that kept cash flowing between crew, employers, dealers and paid insiders.

But despite that being the main port of call, and the primary run of business, it seemed that Ramsey needed multiple locations including: a downtown complex of warehouses and small offices, a night club, a strip bar/gambling ring, a couple small shops, an ammunitions store, and, a back room in a mask shop of all places!

By the time they got to the main location Gavin’s head was reeling with the amount of information he’d just consumed and the fact that even if he wanted to get away from this crew he couldn’t.

\-----

The building itself was grand without being over the top, white stone and glass made it look classy but fit in with every other business building in Achievement City. The only major differences began when you entered in the front doors.

Once everyone was out of the car, Jack threw the keys to a valet who climbed in happily and took it away without question while everyone else walked inside.

The inside of the place was clinical and loud, a large open ceiling allowed you to see up through the first three floors, the corridors of which were a constant stream of people with tablets and files and travel cups of coffee, dressed in everything from smart suits-to-mechanic's overalls, and pretty dresses-to-thick black body armour. The front door and elevators were guarded by broad shouldered men, each dressed in a smart black pant suit and white shirt with aviators and clear ear pieces in while a neat looking receptionist manned the front desk.

Geoff leant across the counter, muttering to the women while Gavin stood in awe at the sights around him. He was here, this was real! He was actually a part of Ramsey team, of The Fake AH Crew, and being let in to every bit of their secrets and lives. It probably should have hit him sooner but he still hadn’t fully comprehended the fact when they stepped out on to the twelfth floor of the offices to be greeted by several new faces, two of which came barrelling toward the group no sooner had they stepped out of the elevator.

The first, which Gavin luckily avoided was a woman of average height and slightly bigger build with brown/red hair. Dressed in comfortable jean and a t-shirt, she’d ran straight in to Michael, the now slightly more awake the lad had taken the hit wrapping his arms around her tightly as she greeted him.

The other was a short woman, barely more than five foot, with thick purple hair who made a bee line for Ryan who had fallen in to step behind Gavin. Unfortunately Gavin didn’t get out of the way quite quick enough and was set flailing backward in his attempt to dodge her.

As the woman practically jumped at Ryan he wrapped an arm tightly around her waist, the other coming out instinctively to catch Gavin’s arm and yank him upright beside him. As Gavin regained his balance he couldn’t prevent his gaze from sliding to Ryan as he held the smaller woman tight, almost protectively, as he kissed her, soft and sweet with a slight grin at the edge of his mouth.

“What’s wrong? Miss me or something?” he chuckled when they finally separated and Ryan released Gavin’s arm so they could follow Geoff, Jack and Ray who had gone to talk to the rest of the crew.

The purple haired woman shrugged, pressing in to Ryan’s side as she walked between him and Gavin.

“Maybe just a little, I never to get to see you much when you’re planning a pick up,” she admitted pausing slightly to look at Gavin, “going to guess this is the man himself? Gavin Free its pleasure,” she greeted, dipping low in to a curtsey and offering a delicate hand out.

Gavin froze for a second unsure of the encounter before Ryan laughed, wrapping an arm around his neck and pulling him in to a headlock, making him squawk.

“I would say, man more of a boy really, a lad at most,” Ryan said, his hand ruffling Gavin’s already messed up hair roughly, his shrieks sending the purple haired woman in to a fit of giggles and causing others to look over at them in confusion as Gavin shook himself out of Ryan’s grip.

“Not fair Ryan,” Gavin grumbled trying to straighten his hair before giving up and offering the hand to the purple haired women.

“Yeah, Gavin Free, I’m the tech guy that this one shot and yet somehow survived,” Meg grinned taking Gavin’s outstretched hand.

“Sounds about right for Ryan, Meg Turney, I run intel, keep everyone in the know and updated on everything Achievement City along with Ashley, and a few of the Funhaus guys,” she said, pointing to a blonde haired women that was currently in a deep conversation with some curly haired guy and some other guy that was wearing a t-shirt two sizes too small. Figuring that the blonde girl was Ashely, and that he’d probably meet _Funhaus_? later he nodded, bidding a quick bye to Meg in order to join Geoff so he could start introducing him to everyone on the B-Team.

First up was the first woman that had ran at them, a bundle of happiness named Lindsay who apparently specialised in blowing shit up and robbing people blind. Then it was Geoff’s right hand men on the B-Team, Kdin and Caleb who helped with the general running of Achievement City and had the most direct line to Geoff out of any of their team. Then there was Tina, Barbara, Patrick and Cole who ran the majority of the surveillance, seeming to each have the ability to watch twenty or more monitors each that seemed to constantly change in to streets that looked identical. And finally was Meg and Ashley, the head of the intelligence team in Ramsey’s empire but who also worked with a group of guys named Funhaus, who mainly kept their fingers outside of Achievement City and were responsible for knowing who was coming in and out at any time.

The entire day was a whirlwind of names and new faces from there on out. Gavin was introduced to main contractors and connection bigwigs, Michael ‘Burnie’ Burns and Matt Hulme, Gus Sorola who seemed to organise everything every second of the companies activities, and Joel Heyman a seemingly ageless man with and extremely unhealthy obsession with gold but an amazing skill at understanding stock markets and keeping a hold on all of Fake AH’s finances and dealings.

He also met the Funhaus guys, who all seemed pretty like decent dudes; a few of the regular mercenaries and hired hands, as well as some other behind the scenes people that made the cars, equipment and general team efficient and look pretty (if slightly conspicuous since one car was a giant black Roosevelt with vibrant green crew emblem on the doors and bonnet).

The more people Gavin met the more drained and confused he became, meeting a ton of new people that had once been your enemies was one thing, picking up on the different relationship cues and small personal quirks each one of them had was another thing entirely.

In his job Gavin had learnt to read people from afar so easily that it was sometimes jarring to get to do it up close, but boy… He’d be lying if he said it wasn’t eye opening.

It had been apparent from his night with them that the main five of Ramsey's team were together in some capacity. Geoff and Jack were obviously the oldest and had been together the longest, but it was also notable that the other three were involved in that somehow.  
They were definitely all very close, but from the encounters today it was also clear that Michael was involved with Lindsay, and Ryan with Meg, who also seemed involved with Ashley given the extremely flirtatious body language Gavin had seen between them.

Throughout his day he’d managed to defer that Meg and Ashely were definitely a thing, but also Burnie was included in there somehow, primarily with Ashley but he was extremely open toward Meg.  
On top of that the Funhaus guys all seemed very close, almost as close as the main five but slightly more professional given the setting, but it was still clear that a couple of them (mainly a guy that was introduced to Gavin only as Kovic, who wore t-shirts two sizes too small) were close with the regular mercenaries and Gavin could have sworn he’d spotted Kovic and some merc named Miles making out as they passed a corridor.

Geoff also had a thing going with one of the design girls, a woman by the name of Griffon who worked in customs but had a healthy enough obsession with fire and pyrotechnics that she could get called in on odd jobs. And Ryan and Ray both had differing relationships with a guy named Risinger, Ryan's being very much love-hate while Ray was a lot more affectionate in their body language toward one another.

By the end of the day Gavin’s head was swimming. The mess of branches and relationships, both platonic and work-based, as well as those obviously affectionate and lust-filled were confusing when Gavin tried to join it all up and try to figure it out, even more so when he realised that everyone else just treated it as normal and everyday activity.

The main, and greatest, thing that had come out of the day was Gavin getting his own office on the surveillance floor of the complex. He was above both Funhaus and the B-Team, but a couple floors below the rest of Fake AH.

On this floor he was stuck with just Barbara, Tina, Patrick, and Cole, for company and guidance on surveillance, as well as a few guys that ran the IT tech, both of them named Adam but one who was referred to as Gilby, and who looked like some terrifying Viking, for general company.

The floor was primarily quiet, a low din of noise echoing slightly from the rest of the complex and constant beat of footsteps as Gillby and Adam moved about making sure nothing died, but nothing you couldn’t block out after a day.

Gavin’s office was made up of five large monitors that were hooked up to state of the art hardware and computer equipment as well as twenty-to-thirty screens that showed a constant feed of Achievement city and switched every few seconds.

Once he’d been left alone to set up his computers Gavin had found quiet solace in watching the city flick by, sometimes he’d bring a specific camera on one of his monitors and just watch the people there. It was great practice, especially when he could watch public places like restaurants or banks and tried to gauge what certain people’s lives were like in that moment.

He didn’t realise how long he sat there watching people until Michael seemed to materialise behind him, his hand slipping on to the back of the chair and turning it slightly. Gavin turned around quickly, tugging the head phones from his ears and staring at the other lad.

“Jesus Christ couldn’t you knock or something?” Gavin gasped his hand over his heart as he attempted to calm his breathing back to a normal pace.

“I did, you didn’t hear me,” he mumbled tapping his ear, “anyway I just came to tell you that we’re leaving soon to grab some food and then Geoffs got a few tasks for us all.” Gavin nodded looking back at the monitors and moving images in front of him.

“So are you fucking coming or what?” Michael called, he hadn’t registered the man's movement from his chair to the door where he was now stood tapping his fingers against the frame.

“Oh… uhh… yeah yeah two seconds,” Gavin rushed to switch off his monitors, leaving the surveillance screens up and running in case the others needed them, and followed Michael out.

Back in the hustle and bustle of the complex everything seemed loud. Gavin could hear Geoff’s contagious giggle from the elevator as he and Michael rode it down to the reception area where everyone was waiting.

It seemed that Ray had challenged Ryan to some game on his Nintendo DS and Ryan just couldn’t understand it, his eyebrows were drawn tight as he focused on the screen, his fingers jumping clumsily over the buttons before he let out a huff and slammed the console shut in his hand.

“It’s a stupid game anyway,” he muttered thrusting the DS back at Ray who opened it and continued with what Ryan had failed at.

“What’s up Rye Bread? Ray challenging you to something that’s not a pigeon dating sim?” Michael asked, approaching the group with Gavin lagging behind him.

“That was one time! And it was Ashley and Meg that challenged me to play it, blame them,” Ryan’s voice seemed to raise several octaves, breaking slightly and sending Geoff in to an even bigger fit.

Together they stumbled out of the complex, Geoff still wheezing as he climbed back in to the truck beside Jack. They drove to a small bar that Gavin had been to a couple times, before Geoff’s men had got in to it, and found that it still served the same decent food. The talk of the upcoming challenges was kept off the table until everyone was back in the car and on their way to the race-track where Geoff went around the group handing out ear pieces.

Gavin took the small piece of plastic warily, placing it in his ear as he watched everyone do the same, Geoff didn’t fit his until he was stood on top of the truck, his arms wide and grin wild as he gazed down at them.

“So, as you boys know I am the king of Achievement City and we recently gained a new member in our court,” Geoff yelled, his voice echoing off the empty seats as he gestured to Gavin, “so I am King Geoff and you are my minions and I have couple tasks for you so see who’s gonna be my new favourite.”

“I was your favourite last time right Geoff?” Michael piped up.

“Yes, yes you were Michael… so… the rules as usual are: you can shoot each other and steal each other’s cars and whatnot as soon as you’re out of this area, the first one of you to complete the task gets a letter, first one to spell K.I.N.G is my new favourite and will replace Michael as top dog.”

Gavin stared at Geoff as he grinned feeling the others shift around him, excitement buzzing in the air as they pulled guns from their jackets and holsters. ‘ _What was this? Hunger Games! What the hell did Geoff mean by everyone being allowed to shoot each other?_ ’

Gavin peered around the four other guys near him, each of them was checking the clips of their guns, large grins creeping across their lips except for Ryan who had pulled his mask back on. It became apparent that this was something normal for this crew and each one of them was prepared while Gavin was not. Geoff noticed his slight panic and pulled two pistols from his jacket.

“Hey, here you go Gavvers,” he laughed throwing the guns to Gavin and groaning as he dropped the pair of them on the ground.

“Alright everyone ready?” Geoff looked around at the group of shuffling guys beneath him a wide grin stretched beneath his moustache, “Right first one to take a selfie on top of the ferris wheel, go!”

Instantly the crew sprinted off, all four heading in different directions leaving a variety of curses in their wake and Gavin spluttering in the dust behind them.

“I said go Gavin,” Geoff taunted behind him, the car’s metal work creaking as he clambered down to sit on the bonnet and the first shots rang out between crew members.

“Why should I? I’m not a sport, I’m not gonna get shot for your amusement,” he spluttered. Geoff slid off the truck, moving to stand in front of Gavin with his arms crossed.

“You’ll play because you owe me the fact that you’re alive right now.” Geoff’s voice was low and threatening, his eyes filled with a deadly fire that Gavin didn’t dare question, “Now you’re gonna run off and play my little game and live doing it, or I’m going to shoot between the eyes right here and make sure you don’t wake up again.”

The pair paused in their stand-off as the realisation that Geoff meant his threat sank in through Gavin’s skull. Gavin swallowed lowering his gaze from Geoff’s as he shuffled off toward the ferris wheel, the yelling in his ear growing more apparent as he raced to join the fight.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by the events of Let's Play - GTA V - King Geoff.  
> ALL HAIL THE KING!

The first game lasted long enough for Gavin to show up at the ferris wheel in time to see Ryan gun down Michael. He froze keeping his gun drawn and behind cover, listening to Ryan’s maniacle laugh as Michael’s body hit the floor. 

In his ear he could hear Jack rambling, yelling apologise to pedestrians as he drove over the beach and through several picnic and beach set ups, and Ray babbling on about how he didn’t even know where the ferris wheel was. Apparently in all the years that Ramsey’s crew had caused chaos he’d never had a reason to go to the beach, or spend multiple hours outside that weren’t for work.

‘ _What the fuck am I doing here?_ ’ Gavin thought to himself ducking back behind covered as gunfire rang out between Ryan and Ray. He placed his head between his knees, Ramsey really was a psycho, he’d just given his own team permission to shoot and kill each other all for his entertainment.

“Hey boi, you not playing?” came a voice behind him, Gavin’s head shot up, drawing his gun and firing a shot through the person’s shoulder, “Ouch! You son of a bitch Gavin! I was gonna call a truce to take down Ryan!” he yelled, stumbling back and clutching his shoulder as blood leaked between his fingers and covered the front of his jacket.

Gavin stared at him.

“What! How! Ryan just shot you! I saw you hit the ground,” Gavin rambled staring at the bloodied mess of Michael’s shirt.

“You’re really having a hard time grasping the whole immortal thing aren’t you?” Michael joked, cocking his gun and firing it in to Gavin’s stomach.

Gavin screamed clutching his stomach against the pain as blood began to cover his shirt.

“That should help you grasp it, see you in few minutes,” and with that Michael ran off jumping out from behind a set off boxes to shoot Ray in the side of the neck and send him to the ground, before running for the empty rollercoaster. 

Gavin stared after him, gasping for breath as he clutched his belly when he felt a hard lump slowly push against his fingers. He pushed himself on to his knees, bracing one hand against the wall of a small store as the bullet fell from between his fingers, landing with a dull thud on the wooden planks. Gavin fought back a gag, turning his face away from the bullet and forcing his hand beneath his shirt to feel the wound.  
It was still there but only a few centimetres or so deep now, most of the heavy bleeding had passed, now that the bullet was out, leaving just a light trickle soaking in to the band of his jeans.

‘ _Right… Immortal… Okay then?_ ’ he thought pushing himself to his feet only to duck back down as a shot skittered past his ear.

“Hey cock suckers! I said on the top of, not from the buckets! That means get out of the cars and get parachuting boys, and Ray you’re still going the completely wrong way!” Geoff yelled in his ear resulting in a collective groan as everyone began calling for information on helicopter locations and Ray cussed, a flurry on screeching tires and horns sounding from his end.

Several minutes of scrambling later and Gavin had managed a truce with Ryan to fly to the wheel together while Ray, Jack and Michael had all taken separate vehicles to their locations.

“I have a heli-chopper,” announced Ray his mic filling with static and rotor noise as he fired up the copter and lifted off.

“Ray going from last to first very quickly,” Geoff commentated, watching as the trackers moved smoothly across the map on his phone.

“Ray how close are ya?” Ryan asked, he was beside Gavin as they flew toward the pier again in a cargo bob, Gavin getting his parachute ready next to him while his own was still sat in its holder above his head.

“I’m right there but I’m gonna fuck it up, so…” wind noise blocked out the rest of his speech as he jumped out of the copter and sky dived toward the wheel, “land it! Land it! Oh, Oh, NO! I fucked it! This is gonna hurt!” Ray’s mic suddenly went silent as he slipped over the top bucket and skidded down the side of the wheel, hitting the wooden planks beneath him.

“Oh fuck, Ray’s gonna feel that tomorrow!” Michael laughed pulling open the door of hospital chopper and climbing in.

“So there’s no one at the ferris wheel now?” Geoff asked, his voice amused and slightly baffled, “I honestly thought Ray had it.”

“Well we all need fucking aircrafts to get there,” Michael scoffed.

“We literally all get there, shrug and then we all leave,” Gavin pointed out causing everyone to laugh.

“Hey, I killed a few people first,” Ryan pointed out.

“Well, yeah, yeah you did,” Michael joked, rubbing his chest as the wheel came in to view in front of him.

More attempts resulted in: Both Ryan and Gavin failing, Ryan’s parachute getting stuck on the wheel itself and becoming an almost permanent fixture of black and yellow tarp. Michael and Gavin calling a truce as they climbed in to separate cargo bobs to try again, only to blow up Jack as Gavin hit the small stunt plane he was flying and leaving just Michael to fail again; falling from the top of the wheel and passing out for several minutes while Ray watched them from a short distance away, his body aching from the fall still.

“Alright, I didn’t think it would be this hard for you idiots,” Geoff huffed. He’d been spending the entire time listening to them and watching the small tracking dot buzz around between the airport and the pier, “Next one to touch it gets the K and then we continue to the next game.”

It didn’t take long after that, Jack already being in the air during Geoff’s rule change ended the game quickly as he hit the top of wheel and managed to swing himself in to the bucket with a thud and victory cry.  
The guys had complained of course, Ryan getting particularly annoyed at Michael who had been snipping his chopper and then his chute from the airport allowing Jack to take the victory. 

The next game was simple, ‘Kill a cop with a baseball bat or a golf club’ both of which turned out very easy to find and purchase close to the beach.

Gavin was convinced that this would be the game that one of them got caught or actually killed. He figured that a shot to the head would be an instant death, kind of like a zombie, and he couldn't help but cringe at the cries of his team mates as they were shot one after another trying to take down cops.

He still jumped when their voices came back over the earpieces, he was so used to team mates getting killed and their mics going silent that he could almost block it out, but hearing a yell and gunshot then hearing the ‘dead’ person laugh or curse was still a strange experience.

After two deaths from Ray, one from Michael, and one from Ryan, Michael announced his victory.

“I got it, I got him, I got him! This guy is dead, bitch! Yeah fuck you! Your skull is mush! I’m king of the mound! This is my pier, bitch!” Michael yelled in victory, slamming the metal baseball bat in the officer’s head again again, the front of his waist coat and shirt getting sprayed with blood.

“Michael has beaten that cop to death alright, that’s a K for you and five bucks in the jar when we get home,” Geoff laughed.

“Aw come on Geoff! You can’t swear jar me during games!” Michael moped, wiping the blood off his bat with the cop’s jacket.

“Okay fine, but you still owe three from lunch,” Geoff bargained. Michael grumbled to himself as Geoff made a note of what was happening before continuing with the games.

\-----

By the penultimate game it was evening; everyone was tired and aching and ready to call it a day, but Geoff insisted that they needed a winner and Gavin couldn’t help but feel like he actually had a chance despite it being his first time in the games.

One game had ended with Michael punching Geoff square in the jaw for a point, while another had Gavin stealing a fire truck and shocking Ray as he sped down the street.  
A cargo bob carrying a tractor had been pulled through many trees and kept just meters off the ground to be delivered to Geoff's feet at the race track, earning Gavin his N and tying him with Michael, until Jack made a comeback and sent them in to a three-way tie for their potential last game.

“So boys, three way tie, Michael, Jack and new boy, Gavin, all fighting it out, and I gotta say you all look like shit,” Geoff surveyed as the crew gathered around him waiting for the final game. He wasn’t lying they all did look like crap, covered in dried blood and grime they all stank, as well as that they all had several bullet wounds and explosion scrapes that were still in the process of healing some still trickling blood from wounds in their heads or chest. 

Gavin had found out that shooting someone in the head didn’t kill them permanently but it did knock them out for a few more minutes than a chest or stomach wound would, he’d only found out after watching Ryan shoot Jack point blank in order to steal his bike and he had to admit that seeing Jack lay motionless on the floor was a shock. He’d counted himself out of that race for a few minutes just to see if he would come back and ran off as soon as bullet was pushed from his skull and he sat up with a gasp.

“Alright, everyone get out whatever melee weapon you have on you and stand in a circle,” everyone nodded, pulling out or picking up various weapons. Gavin and Ray with a small pocket knives, Ryan with a golf club, Jack with a baton and Michael with a baseball bat that was still carrying remnants of the cop he’d killed.

“Right everyone ready?.. Last man standing, go!” Geoff called, Gavin stabbing Michael in the chest and sending him to the ground instantly as he dodged a swing, while Jack managed to get Ryan around the back of the head and throw him off balance. The game was soon over when Ray proved that a knife can be both a golf club and police baton as he sent them both to the ground and earned himself a point. 

Everyone was groaning when they got back up. Ray’s victory meant that had to keep playing and hope that neither Ray or Ryan won the next round so they could just all go home.

“Fuck sake, right last game,” Geoff grunted, helping Jack to his feet and tutting slightly at the state of his clothing, “this one’s easy, you can kill each other, use whatever vehicles you want, just catch a train, go.”

“Catch a tree?” Gavin questioned, running over Michael in an attempt to pick him up in a large white land rover. Michael falling out with him and running off to find his own mode of transport leaving Ray in to get in the car with Gavin.

“A train, asshole,” Geoff grunted.

“Dumbass,” Jack agreed before running to grab one of the quad bikes at the track and speed off.

Almost thirty minutes passed with the crew driving on the tracks before Jack announced that he was on the train, Michael confirming as it went past him with Jack in one of the containers.

“Yep, he’s there I just missed it,” Michael muttered, everyone cheered tiredly.

“Alright Jack wins!” Geoff enthused in to his ear piece, finally being allowed to leave the race track and get in the car he’d been driving, “I don’t know where any of you are so I’ll meet you all back at the apartments, Gavin if you come to my apartment, I’ll give you the keys to your own place and you can settle in their tonight.”

“Okay, thanks Geoff,” Gavin yawned in return as he tried to gain his bearing and hot-wired the nearest car to him. He managed to past Michael on the way back, the man sticking to the dark shadows in order to hide his bloodstained clothing.

“You want a lift boi?” he called, pulling up beside him and lowering the window. Michael looked up at him squinting through the darkness before climbing in to the car.

“Thanks, actually had no idea where I was going, lost my fucking glasses jumping on the train after Jack,” he said, slouching back in the chair and rubbing his face.

They drove in silence the rest of the ride, bidding each other a good night as Michael went to his own apartment and Gavin to Geoff’s.

Both Geoff and Jack were in when he got there, although they hadn’t been there long since they were still dressed in their filthy clothing; just their shoes kicked against the wall.

“Oh hey Gavvers, you found your way back then, come on then I’m sure you wanna get out of this lot as much as us,” Geoff greeted, his voice was tired and face still slightly bruised from having a car he was in being blown up, but he smiled as he grabbed the set of two keys off the kitchen counter and called a quick bye to Jack who was in the shower.

Gavin’s apartment was a couple floors below Geoff’s since he had the penthouse, and was informed that Ryan’s apartment was also on this floor so he should probably expect some yelling and screams… What from? and Why? Gavin was left wondering as Geoff pushed the door open and pointed out the basics of the flat.

It was smaller than Geoff's suite but still had a decent sized living space and open plan kitchen, with a large bedroom, bathroom and medium sized study. Everything had already been stocked. The kitchen was full of food and liquor, the bathroom cabinets filled with shampoo, conditioner, shaving foam, toilet paper, towels, and his bed room drawers stocked with fresh clothes and duvet covers.

Geoff handed him the keys and bid him a goodnight, slapping him lightly on the back as a well done for his joint second place that day, before leaving and closing the door behind him.

Gavin didn’t care much for the food in his kitchen instead he poured himself a short glass of whisky and set it on his bedside table while he went to shower, analysing the multitude of new marks and scars that were already disappearing from his body. His chest had almost entirely healed now, the hair in the centre just slightly shorter than the rest but otherwise completely unnoticeable.

He towel dried his hair and flopped on to the bed, staring at the ceiling as he thought about this second chance that he’d been given. So far immortality was proving useful, he could do stupid stuff that would normally get him killed without worrying that much but he had to admit that his energy drained everytime he came back. He also still wasn’t sure what the limits to his ability were, but Geoff had made it clear at the start of the games that he could take it away at any time.

Thought scared Gavin slightly, that’s how he kept you here once he’d brought you back, it was black mail of the worst kind. True Gavin did owe him this life and this power, but he’d never asked for it… he’d actually been thinking about backing out of his former crew and seeing how he’d do on his own for bit, now he didn’t have a choice, and it was clear that Geoff enjoyed using the crew for his own games.

He tried not to think about it as he downed his drink and climbed in to bed. Tomorrow was a new day after all and maybe they’d actually start acting like a crew and pull some heists or something.


	4. Chapter 4

“Gavin will you wake the fuck up we’re gonna be late!” someone was yelling. Squinting around him he could just about make out the time on the clock, 06:43am. How long had he been asleep? Couldn’t have been more than a few hours? 

The banging at his door continued and reluctantly Gavin rolled himself out of bed. His joints were stiff as he stretched, padding through the living to the growing noise at his front door.

He yanked it open, stepping sideways to avoid the fist that had be banging on his door and now passed through thin air. It was Ryan, he was dressed in his usual attire of jeans, plain shirt that hid the toned muscle of his chest, and his black leather jacket. A gun hung from the holster on his hip and Gavin could just about make out the one hidden in his jacket.

“Hello… Gavin?” Ryan called, waving a hand in front of Gavin’s face, “Seriously dude, I’m know I’m hot but quit the analysis, you was meant to be at Geoff’s apartment fifteen minutes ago, hurry the fuck up,” Ryan prodded him lightly in the centre of his chest, the slight force behind him sending him stumbling backward. Ryan shook his head, and turned away yelling that he had five minutes before they left without him as he entered the elevator.

Pushing a hand through his hair Gavin closed the door, grabbing a red bull from the fridge and setting it on the side while he went to wash and pull on a clean set of clothes.

When he arrived at Geoff’s apartment everyone was already there. Michael and Ray were cleaning a set of sniper rifles, the ammo laid out carefully and ready to be loaded in to the magazines. While Jack was helping Geoff fasten his shirt and bow tie in the kitchen, Ryan was nowhere to be seen so Gavin guessed that he was either in the bathroom or getting the car ready.

“Hey sorry I’m late, forgot to set an alarm, what’s going on?” Gavin asked walking over to the kitchen and taking a long gulp of his red bull.

“Well your fucking lucky we didn’t leave you ass, we’ve got an ordnance deal going down in about an hour or so. Ryan and I are meeting with the dealer, Jacks got the truck on call and Michael and Ray are our back-up…” Geoff listed, trying to stay as still as possible as Jack finished the bow tie and dusted off his shoulders before walking off to help the lads load the ammunition. Geoff smiled after him, tugging on the collar slightly to try and loosen it as he walked toward Gavin placing his hands on the lad’s shoulders.

“And you, my mingy little friend are gonna be our eyes and ears. No it’s up to you how you want to do it, you can either hack their main frame from the truck or start it here, if you think you can manage it in three minutes, and then just stay watching and in contact from the copter that’s gonna pick up Michael and Ray once the deals done.”

Gavin thought for a moment, he had his laptop ready in his bag and quickly nodded, pulling it out and being thankful for the quick load time as he perched on top of the kitchen counter. Geoff smiled at him, giving him the dock address that the swap would be at and leaving him to it.

As it turned out Gavin managed to gain his eyes on place within two minutes and was just finishing up the solid connection when Ryan emerged from down the hall, his face covered in thick red, white, and black face paint. Gavin held back the laugh that threatened to push past his lips, turning his gaze away from the older man. ‘ _As if the mask isn’t bad enough?_ ’ Gavin thought to himself, eyeing the black rubber mask that he held loosely in his hand as he nodded to Geoff to signal he was ready to leave.

“Right boys, ready to go?” Geoff asked, the group muttered short responses and Gavin watched as they began to load up the bags and themselves with a variety of weapons. Geoff and Ryan hid pistols and knives on their person while Jack grabbed a hand gun and stuffed an SMG plus a few spare clips in to a bag. Michael and Ray placed their rifles in separate bags, pulling the weapons on to their shoulders as Gavin became frightfully aware that he didn’t have any form of gun as he closed his laptop and placed it back in his bag, slipping off the counter and standing by the door.

“Right we’ll take two cars down, Gavin, Ray, Michael you guys are meeting Kdin on top of the Sandiargo while me, Jack and Ryan go ahead to the docks and make sure the trucks in place,” Geoff reeled off as the crew piled in to the elevator riding it down to the well-stocked garage that had Gavin’s mouth hanging open at the sheer beauty of the cars.

Ray grinned at the Brit’s shock and admiration, walking over to him and handing him an earpiece he’d just go off Geoff,

“Yeah, we’re all kinda rich,” he joked, Gavin nodded numbly following him to a simple black Obey Tailgater and climbing in, placing his bag next to him on the backseat, while Michael climbed in the driver’s seat and Ray in the passenger seat. The three fit their ear pieces and suddenly Geoff was rambling in their ears again, speaking to Ryan and Jack as the picked out a simple car and climbed in.

“Right boys, we’ll see you at the docks,” Geoff called as he swung out of the garage, Michael following him quickly but losing him amongst the thick rush hour traffic.

“Really fucking hate rush hour,” Michael muttered as he ran another red light, Ray through middle fingers to the drivers that honked and swore at them.

“Michael really? Already swearing?” Ryan mocked. Michael slammed his hand on to the wheel and floored the gas, holding in the stream of curses that he wanted to fling at Ryan. It was alright, he’d make him scream those curses later.

“So Geoff where we taking the ordnance after the deal?” Ray asked, his hand slipping casually on to Michael’s knee as he rubbed calming circles over the fabric.

“Well the first half is going to BTS so the guys there can work on it, then some needs to go to the Siren and the rest split amongst the safe houses, so we’ll leave the houses to you guys since you can get around quicker,” Geoff told them bluntly as he took a wrong turn in order to avoid a cop camera and cursed under his breath.

Ray nodded quickly as Michael pulled up in front of the Sandiargo, a well-respected hotel that also served as Ramsey’s personal helicopter pick-up and drop-off point. The lads climbed out, Michael and Ray grabbing their bags from the trunk of the car and jumping the stairs in to the hotel.

Gavin was slightly shocked by the other guy's confidence as the pair walked with purpose through the lobby of the hotel, their heads held high as they bypassed the receptionists and guards, heading straight for the staff elevators. Gavin scurried after them, his own body language oozing everything but confidence. None of them spoke as they rode the elevator up to the top floor and paced quickly down the hall toward the fire exit that led to the roof.

Gavin was almost pushed back down the stairwell as Michael thrust the door open, the wind whipping across the roof and making their clothing flap as they strode toward the chopper.

Kdin was sat in the cockpit and waved as they approached.

“Here Gav, you get in the front with Kdin, get your equipment and shit set up, we’ll be in the back,” Gavin nodded climbing in beside Kdin and shaking his hand quickly in greeting as he started the chopper.

“Make sure you switch your headsets guys!” Kdin called over the roar of the rotors, handing Gavin a large pair of headphones with a mic attached, he nodded, pulling the smaller earpiece out of his ear and placing it in his bag, pulling the large headset over his ears.

“This is Ramsey-Alpha-One, Lads are picked up, setting off to the docks now. We clear for take-off Barb? Over,” Kdin called in to his mic.

“This is Eyes-N-Ears at main base, you’re clear to go Ramsey-Alpha-One, over,” a woman’s voice sounded from the other end, cutting through the static as Kdin began ascending and steered toward the docks. 

Gavin began to set up his laptop again, following through the connection that he’d set up at Geoff’s to start looking through the dock’s cameras. He could already see Geoff’s car hidden in the shade between two lots of loading containers and could just about make out one of them (he guessed Ryan given the roundness of the figure’s head) stood on the dock when he flicked to another camera to see Geoff walking toward Ryan, lifting his hand to his ear and transmitting his voice through their headsets.

“Alright lads, you guys close?” he called. Kdin answered,

“We’re just coming up on the docks now, Ray, Michael get ready to jump.”

“Yep were ready to go,” Michael replied. If Gavin twisted in his seat he could see Michael’s back a parachute strapped on and ready with his gun bag, fastened tightly to his front.

“Right Michael, Ray, you’re good to go, pick you up on the south end later,” Kdin told them and without a second thought the pair removed their headsets and jumped from the helicopter, gliding for a few feet before pulling their chutes, replacing their smaller earpieces as they floated toward the loading containers. 

The calls, of ‘chute deployed… landing in, four, three, two, alright down, Gavin you go eyes on us?’ set Gavin’s heart back at ease as Kdin flew them toward the south end of the docks. He flicked through the cameras quickly, managing to catch sight of Michael as he jumped from one container to another.

“Yep got you Michael, Ray hold position a second,” he said, his eyes continuous flicking over the changing screens and the one that he had locked on the dock. Ray came in to his view, crouched on top of a red container three containers over from the dock they were meant to be watching.

“Right Ray I’ve got you, trying going to your left though, you’re about three lots over, Michael you look like your heading in the right direction so just stay low.”

“Hey Gav you got look on Jack bringing the truck through? He might need your help reversing that shit,” Geoff asked. Gavin nodded to himself looking over the cameras until he found the medium sized black truck with Jack in driver’s seat.

“Alright Jack I’ve got eyes on you, if you take the next right then second left it’ll bring you out two down from the dock and you can just drive up there and turn left so you don’t have to try and reverse,” Gavin told him lowering his voice as Kdin landed the helicopter and turned off it’s engine.

“Alright thanks for the heads up Gavin, any signs of the guys yet Geoff?” he asked, taking the turn that Gavin advised and following it round.

“Looks like their boats just coming in now, everyone ready to go quiet?” a chorus of yeps and readys filtered through the slight static as Gavin swapped his ear pieces back, Kdin climbing out of the chopper to stand guard.

“Alright, only one I want to hear from is Gavin if something looks fishy so keep your eyes peeled boy,” Geoff ordered.

“You got it Boss,” Gavin replied, falling in to his former professional mode easily, and with that the group fell in to silence, Gavin watching as an expensive looking yacht pulled in to the dock and tanned gentleman climbed off followed by two well-built guards.

Gavin was thankful for the earpiece’s sensitivity as he listened to and watched the exchange between Geoff and the guys he was guessing was either European or Arabian. He flicked his eyes to another locked camera, which he could just about see Michael on as he lay flat on top of a container his gun poised and ready, Ray was in the same position on the other side his gaze locked down the sight of his rifle. Gavin’s eyes snapped back to the dock camera as Jack came around the corner parking with the tail end of the trailer pointing toward the dock.

The truck cut off some of Gavin’s view and he had to quickly click through the cameras to find another, it wasn’t the best but he could just make out the tail of the truck where Jack was now stood, two brief cases in his hands which he handed to Ryan.

It was clear to see that Geoff was the only that did the talking on these deals, the other two men were there for muscle and intimidation while Michael and Ray were just a precaution to make sure they didn’t get dooped. Getting shot in the head put you down long enough for the person that did it to make a getaway, having two snipers meant that the guys had time to wake up without all their shit getting stolen.

As it was the deal seemed to be going as plan, as Geoff opened one of the brief cases and showed its contents to the dealer who nodded and waved toward his boat. Gavin kept his eyes tried on the men as they filtered off the boat pushing various cages of ordnance and wooden boxes probably filled with ammunition. Jack nodded opening the back of the trailer and lowering the ramp so they could begin loading it.

Geoff was making general small talk with the dealer while Jack watched his truck being loaded; Gavin kept his gaze on the stuff coming off the boat. All of it seemed clear until he spotted something stuck to the side of the last box. He placed his hand to his ear relaying the information to the team before Jack could close the truck.

“Well all seems in order,” Geoff smiled having heard Gavin’s warning that there was something potentially stuck to the last box, “Vagabond do you want to just check over the boxes before we go?” Ryan nodded, having also heard Gavin’s warning as he jumped in to the back of the truck.

“Yeah we’ve got a sticky bomb on this last box,” Ryan muttered, his voice low enough that it wouldn’t echo through the truck’s trailer, “I can disarm the remote detonation but it’s still gonna blow in a couple minutes so get them heading out and I’ll chuck it after them,” Ryan’s voice was deadly and concentrated as Geoff faked a smile and told them that they could go.

Gavin laughed at the look of shock on the dealer’s face, as he nodded and turned quickly on to the already running boat. As it began to pull away Ryan stepped out of the truck, the sticky bomb in his hand before he threw it after the boat, landing on the desk with a thud before exploding loud enough that Gavin would have heard it without the earpiece.

“Don’t fuck with Fake AH, bitch!” Geoff yelled at the burning wreck as a few of the dealer's men jumped, burning in to the water as Ryan stepped aboard retrieveing the bulletproof cases from the cockpit of the boat and jumping back off throwing a small hand grenade in and letting it blow behind him. Geoff turned his back then walking back toward the car with Ryan while Jack closed the truck and climbed in.

“Alright boys we’ll meet you at the main base, spilt up the ordnance there,” Geoff told them several noises of approval followed his statement along with the low clicks of Michael and Ray deconstructing their guns, “hey good spot on that bomb Gav, saved us a ton of money for potentially faulty weaponry.”

Gavin smiled to himself as he watched Jack’s truck leave the dock, followed by Geoff and Ryan’s car, Kdin climbed back in beside him starting the chopper so they could pick up the other two and head to the base as sirens began to scream in the distance.

\-----

By the time Kdin landed the helicopter at the base and everyone was back on the Fake AH floor, the weaponry had been split up and delivered to the customs workers. Geoff meanwhile was busy ordering the removal of the dealer, a Mr Akito Maeda, from his safety records. He also ordered for everyone on Maeda’s payroll to be tracked down and marked in case they attempted to try business in Achievement City again.

It was the first time that Gavin had had a chance to look around the Fake AH base while Geoff was barking orders and in honesty he was surprised by how lacklustre it was.  
The base was primarily a shell, one side entirely filled with a window that looked out toward the city while another was covered top-to-bottom with guns, knives, rocket launchers, various blue prints and sketches and notes on stuff that needed doing or could be improved. In front of that was a large table the centre of which was covered with a large map of Achievement City and it’s surrounding areas, the entire thing laminated with a pot of whiteboard markers beside it, and surrounded by six chairs while others were stacked haphazardly in the corner.  
There was also a separate office, which was more like a library with a worn leather couch and the constant smell of cigar smoke and whisky clinging to everything, and a brightly lit gym that was filled with treadmills, cross-trainers, weight machines, punch bags and floor pads. That was where Gavin found Ryan, shirtless and sweating as he lay on the bench press. Gavin didn’t know how long he stood there for just watching as Ryan’s muscles strained; biceps flexing with every push and chest shining beneath the light dusting of dark chest hair.

“Enjoying the show?” Meg asked from behind him making Gavin jump backward in to the room, his cheeks flushing a fiery pink as Ryan grunted to a halt, placing the bar back on it’s holders and sitting up.

“I was just… erm… I was just…” Gavin babbled stuffing his hands in his pockets and trying not to look at either of them.

“You was just spotting for me weren’t you Gav,” Ryan chuckled coming up behind him and placing his hands on his shoulders.

Gavin fought back the slight moan as Ryan tightened his grip, rolling in thumbs either side of Gavin’s spine and causing shivers to run down his spine as he turned to jelly in the older man’s hands. He opened his eyes to see Meg looking hungrily between them, a fire in her eyes that Gavin wasn’t used to seeing when women looked at him, but it quickly vanished when she realised he’d spotted and replaced it with a large grin.

“Of course he was, anyway, I just came to tell you Ryan that Geoff’s looking for you, think he’s almost ready to split up the ordnance,” she told him.

Gavin felt Ryan nod behind him, his hands disappearing from his shoulders and leaving him cold.

“Yeah I guess, we should start on that, got a lot of places to visit before the hits tonight, tell him I’ll take the south edge, I just need to shower and stuff,” he told her, pulling his towel from the floor and running it through his damp hair before looping it around his neck.

“I’d much rather join you, but I guess business has to come first, what times your hit tonight?” Meg flirted, still stood in the doorway to prevent Gavin from leaving. Instead he leant against the wall, trying to look as composed as possible and keep his eyes on the phone in front of him as he scrolled through the morning’s news stories, including a story about a boat explosion at the AC Boat Docks.

“Erm, if everything goes to play we should be back at the apartments by midnight, just depends on how long it takes the police activity to calm down while we lay low,” Ryan answered, standing close enough Gavin that he could feel the heat rolling off the older man.

Meg huffed slightly, crossing her arms beneath her chest and raising them slightly.

“Well I guess I’ll just have to be there waiting for you then won’t I,” she stated, a devilish grin filling her lips as Ryan looked at her, his eyebrow cocked slightly as his eyes raked down her body and he nodded. With a final smile at Gavin, Meg walked off to find Geoff and relay Ryan’s statement to him.

“She sure is something isn’t Gavin?” Ryan chuckled walking past Gavin and through the base towards what he guessed was the showers.

“Yeah… sure is,” he mumbled to himself watching Ryan leave.

Gavin left after that, finding Michael and Ray as they waited for the helicopter to be refuelled so they could take their weaponry to the more remote safe houses in and around Achievement City. They were set to go up in to the hills and then out along the coast and over to the safe house on a remote island that Geoff actually owned, so the police had no authority there.

\-----

All the drop off on the main island only took a couple hours each, but it was the flight to and from the island that seemed to take forever and the changing weather wasn’t helping in the slightest.

“Reckon Geoff will call off the hits if we can’t get back?” Ray asked Michael from the passenger seat as Michael fought for control against the growing wind.

“Probably not he just won’t hit as many, just him, Jack and Ryan will take it blind,” he grunted as the first cliffs of the island came in to view through the fine rain that had started to blind them, “if the weather gets worse though we’re definitely not getting back tonight,” Michael’s eyes were trained on the horizon in front of him as Gavin clung for dear life in the back of chopper.

Gavin couldn’t see the weather worsening around him but he could feel it in every tilt and jostle of the choppers body as Michael brought it over land, the tiny red lights coming in to view beside the safe house as Michael edged nearer.

With a thud it hit the ground, Gavin squawking slightly at the impact as Ray and Michael unfastened themselves from the pilot seats.

“Right let’s get this lot inside as quickly as possible, then we might just to sit tight and hope for the best,” Michael ordered, Gavin nodded pulling open one of the side doors and pushing down the short ramp while Ray did the same with other.

The weather battered their bodies as they pushed toward the garage, icy coastal rain soaking them to skin as they ran between the chopper and garage with boxes and short cages of ordnance and by the time they’d locked the chopper and Michael had secured it to the pad all three lads were drenched, they clothes heavy as water dripped from them causing large puddles to form on the garage floor beneath them.

“Yeah we’re not getting out of here tonight,” Ray muttered pulling off his glasses and placing them on top of a large tool chest as a large rumble of thunder echoed across the island.

“No chance, I’ll call Geoff once we’re in,” Michael replied as he pulled of his leather jacket and shirt, kicking off his shoes. Gavin stood, shivering awkwardly as Ray began doing the same, his eye wide and unsure of where to look.

Michael was half way through unfastening his jeans when he noticed that Gavin looked too shocked to move.

“Gav, trust me the sooner you get out of those clothes, the sooner you can come inside, you might be immortal now but that doesn't stop you getting sick," he joked, Gavin was still straining to keep his eyes on the other man's face as he sighed, "Look it's nothing none of us haven't seen before, just undress down to your boxers and you can jump in the shower first, okay?” the Brit nodded stiffly and began pulling off his clothes while Michael dropped his jeans and followed Ray through to the main body of the house, throwing his clothes in the washing machine as he wandered past it to the kitchen. 

Gavin followed shortly after, trying not to think how lanky he seemed in comparison to everyone else in this crew. He guessed that after years of crime and exercise it wasn’t likely that any of these guys would be out of shape, but hell even Ray who was the smallest and slimmest of them all seemed in better shape than Gavin with his body of lean and toned muscles covered with unmarred tanned skin.

When he got in to the main body of the house Ray handed him a thick towel, similar to the ones that he and Michael were already wrapped in.

“Bathrooms just down the hall boi, second door on the right, and there’s clothes in the bedroom next to it,” Michael smiled holding his phone in the air as he tried to find a signal. Gavin nodded shuffling down the hall quickly.

\-----

The house, considering it was rarely used, was nicely decorated. The living room was cosy with a large gas fire that filled the house with heat, and a simple kitchen that seemed stocked with soup, cereal, ramen noodles, tea, coffee, long life milk and of course liquor which Michael had happily helped himself to in an attempt to unfreeze his insides.  
There were two small bedrooms that somehow squeezed in a double bed, side table and small set chest of drawers. And another door that Ray informed Gavin led to the basement which is where they kept all the weaponry and tec stuff.

Michael managed to get through to Geoff over the old landline that had been fitted in the house, and told him that there was no way of getting off the island until the weather cleared. A tad disgruntled Geoff had wish them all well, telling them to keep safe and get back as soon as they could.

That evening was spent playing stupid games since there was nothing else to do. With Michael and Gavin both drinking slowly there were eye opening games of 'Never Have I Ever', and clumsy competitions to see who could do a handstand for longest (Gavin won that against Ray) or who could do the most push ups in a minute (which Michael managed even with Gavin sat on his back).

By midnight, the rain was still pelting against the sides of the house, the odd roll of thunder breaking through the walls. Both Michael and Gavin were rather tipsy as they started speaking about their pasts.

Michael couldn’t remember most of his past before joining the crew, given the fact that he’d accidently been shot through the head when Geoff had come to get him, he’d been part of an expedition with Lewis and Clark moving up the Missouri River in the 1800s.

“I was their explosives guy and I guess Geoff thought I had enough potential that he cut us all off, killed a few guys, the rest got away, and I got brought back,” Michael told them, Ray had heard the story a million times since first meeting Michael and everyone, and hearing about the old days honestly bored him now, but to Gavin the idea of being alive that long was terrifying.

“Years mainly just blurred together, it was just Geoff, Jack and me at first, then we found Lindsay, Meg and Ashley who were running a small women’s gang sometime in the 1960s and boy were they a sight… gave the law the good run around, only reason Geoff killed them he did was so they could all stay in the team... somewhere down the line we met Ray."

“1980s I think it was… something like that, Jack shoots me in the stomach and leaves me to bleed out while he takes out the rest of the drug house, and I wake up beside you a few hours later,” Ray added, smiling fondly at Michael who grinned back.

“So you guys have known each other for fucking ages then,” Gavin stated baffled.

“Guess so yeah, honestly though Geoff had stopped recruiting after Ryan turned up at our door,” Michael laughed taking another swing of his beer and leaning back against the couch. 

As the night had gone on they’d all slowly shifted from the couches to the floor, purely for the fact that it was closer to the heater and it made them feel closer as a group. Gavin enjoyed the closeness, so far he’d still felt like an outsider just going along with what he was told to do and what everyone else did, but now he felt that he was actually starting to belong.

“So wait, Geoff didn’t go after Ryan?” Gavin asked confused as he skipped back over the conversation in his head.

“Nope, the guy just turned up on our doorstep one morning, of course we knew who he was, guy had been making a nuisance of himself for years in Geoff’s territory, but boy did we all get a shock when Geoff tried to shoot him point blank,” Michael chuckled the memory of that morning playing in his head as he spoke, “Geoff shoots him the chest, right in the heart and then stands there watching Ryan laugh and lift his shirt to show the already healing wound.” Gavin stared at him.

“So Ryan can do what Geoff can?” he asked confused, why would Ryan? The Vagabond, The Reaper, The Mad King, the man most feared by everyone choose to join a crew when he can’t be killed anyway?

“Not exactly, the guys immortal through his own heritage, yes, Lindsay is too, but Geoffs the only guy I’ve met that could transfer his gift from one person to another, don’t half take it out of him though... I’ve watched that guy age a couple years every time hes brought another person back,” Michael said, his eyes glazed as he obviously replayed the countless firefights he’d been in beside Geoff, watching as Geoff aged and grew with every new addition.

“Personally I think he just wanted to join cause we had Turney, and then he realised that EVERYONE Geoff chooses to bring back is pretty fine,” Ray laughed taking a drink of his red bull and nudging Gavin slightly.

Gavin laughed remembering the conversation between Meg and Ryan in the fitness room, he wondered if they were fucking now. If he would have been able to hear their moans through his bedroom wall; their muted curses and breathy begs for more. 

Shaking the thoughts from his head he swallowed curiosity winning out over better judgement thanks to alcohol.

“So do you all you guys?... I mean are you all like… like a thing?...” he asked, Michael and Ray glanced at each other their eyebrows raised slightly as they each thought about it. Geoff and Jack were definitely a thing, so were Michael and Ray…

“I guess so?” Michael admitted unsure, “I mean I was with Lindsay before I met Ray, and I’d joined in with Geoff and Jack before that… I don’t know it’s never really seemed strange, of course there are stronger relationships but there isn’t really any form of jealousy…”

“It’s just a lot of polyamory really, if both parties are consenting and open to it then we don’t really see the problem, I think Ryan and Meg are the most open out of all of us though, they’re pretty much up for anything,” Ray added his gaze steady as Gavin tried to take it in, nodding slowly as it all fit in to place.

In his head it all checked out, Geoff and Jack had been together the longest and obviously when you’re alive that long you’re gonna sick of one person but he guessed that it could also get very lonely. From the sounds of it, Ryan had been on his own a long time and when he’d heard about the crew he’d jumped at the chance, making a big enough stir that Geoff couldn’t really turn him down.

“So what about you Gav?” Michael asked, his voice soft and careful, almost as if he was just testing the waters for something bigger.

“What about me?” Gavin asked back confused.

“Where do you fall on the spectrum?”

Gavin thought for a moment.  
Growing up in England he’d only dated girls, mainly because he’d never wanted to explain the thoughts of being attracted to guys to his parents. But he’d fooled around a bit in university and then when he’d moved to Achievement City he’d pretty much fucked whoever had taken his fancy.

Back in his old crew there’d been this one mercenary named Dan who he’d had feelings for and they’d fucked a few times before he got transferred to another job that was paying more. That had been almost two years ago. Now he didn’t know where he fell.

“I don’t know honestly, I guess I don’t really have a preference, I’ve been with girls I’ve been with guys,” Gavin shrugged, meeting Michael’s gaze who nodded, “never really had a solid relationship either if I’m honest, not much chance for it in this business,” he scoffed shaking his head slightly as he finished his beer. He peered at his watch, it was almost two in the morning, both Michael and Ray seemed to realise the time as well as the three yawned and stood up, each of them clicking from being sat on the floor for so long.

Michael walked over to the window, the horizon looked to be clearing slightly and the rain and lightened up, they should be able to get back home tomorrow, first thing if the weather improved a bit more overnight.

Placing the empty beer bottles and red bull cans on the kitchen side the three went off to bed, Michael and Ray sharing one room while Gavin was left to sleep alone, tossing and turning slightly as he mulled over the nights conversation and fell in to a light sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EEEE really enjoyed writing the Team Lads little bonding session ^_^


	5. Chapter 5

Gavin woke up the next morning to the whirring of rotors, he stumbled out of his room and through the house to the garage.

It was cold but outside the weather looked to be dry, the gravel still stained dark with water.

“Come on you piece of shit!” he heard Michael yell outside as the whirring stuttered and popped before cutting out completely, “Fuck!” he screamed, spotting Gavin’s head poking around the corner of the garage.

“Stupid thing won’t start, must have got battered last night the amount of shit I had to pull out of the rotors,” he grumbled climbing out of the cockpit and striding toward Gavin, “sent Ray down to the dock to see if we’ve got any fuel down there but it ain’t looking good, Geoff might have to send someone to pick us up,” he admitted grabbing a rag from beside Gavin’s shoulder and wiping his hands.

Gavin nodded, not knowing how to contribute to the situation, he’d worked on a couple vehicles back in his old team but he wouldn’t count himself a professional. He was about to ask if he could take a look when Michael spotted Ray coming up the track from the dock empty handed.

“Fuck sake,” he huffed, "I’m too decaffeinated for this shit,” he muttered turning his back to Gavin and heading back inside. Gavin watched him leave.

“Morning Gavin,” Ray greeted as he entered the garage. Gavin smiled at him,

“Morning, is he always this grumpy?” he asked gesturing after Michael.

“Michael? Without caffeine yeah, but he’s a good guy at heart, would do anything for the crew even if it meant losing his immortality,” Ray admitted with a shrug, “you want a coffee doing?” he asked taking a step toward the house.

“Narr I’m good thanks, gonna have a look at the helicopter, see if I can get it going so Geoff doesn’t have to send someone out.”

Ray nodded heading inside while Gavin went outside. The cold air bit at the bare skin of his arms, but he was thankful for the thick jogging bottoms he’d managed to find to sleep in last night the elasticated bottoms preventing them from trailing over the damp gravel as he feet slapped through the shallow puddles.

Pulling open the engine flap of the helicopter he began to work enjoying the focus and familiarity of the work. Surveillance work was fine, it was fun and mainly kept him out the field, but there was something about mechanics that made Gavin feel at peace, maybe it was the grease or the dirt or how he could take something broken and make it work better than it had before.

A couple hours later and the helicopter was spinning back in to life, the engine purring smoothly as Gavin ran his final checks. Both Michael and Ray came running out of the house staring in awe as Gavin grinned at them switching off the chopper and climbing out.

“Yeah Geoff nevermind with that pick-up Gavs sorted it,” Michael spoke down the phone smirking slightly baffled at Gavin as he jogged toward them.

“Didn’t know you was a mechanic Gav,” Ray laughed wrapping an arm around Gavin’s shoulder as they walked back in to the house.

“I did a bit back with some old teams but I’m mainly just a tech guy,” he shrugged, stamping his feet slightly and scrunching his toes in to the carpet as he tried to get some heat back in to them.

“Well thank god you knew what to do, Geoff wasn’t too happy about having to come get us. Any idea how much fuel we’ve got?” Michael asked hanging up the phone and placing it back in his jeans pocket.

“Enough to get us back to Sandiargo if the weather holds up, I’m gonna guess that car is still there?” Gavin told him rubbing his arms as Ray went to make him a coffee. Michael nodded throwing himself down on the couch.

“Alright you go get dressed and I’ll call the Sandiargo so they can get the car ready,” Michael smiled, worming the phone back out of his pocket. Gavin nodded taking the coffee off Ray and heading back to his room.

\-----

By the time the three lads were back at the main base everyone was busy. Jack had locked himself in the office with Caleb and Kdin to go over city business while Ryan had gone out with Lindsay, Meg and Ashley to run through some connections and do a bit of clean up.

Geoff meanwhile down in the customs weaponry, testing out some of the equipment Maeda had given them now that the BTS team had optimised and improved it. He was in the firing range when the lads walked in, Griffon handing them each a set of protective ear wear upon entry while another member of the team handed Ray one of the new rifles and Michael a combat pistol. Gavin stood behind them awkwardly as they fired shots through the targets, almost each one landing perfectly centred over either the heart or head. Geoff spotted the other two on his flakes, turning to see Gavin stood in the shadows watching them. He called over to the guys that were moving the weapons about and placed on the bench in front of him, waving for Gavin to follow as he left the range and handed his ear protection back to Griffon.

Gavin followed handing in his own ear wear before jogging to catch up with Geoff as Joel came up to him, handing over a large stack of papers and wandering off again with a tablet clutched between his hands, watching as the stock markets for various things grew and fell.

Gavin caught up with Geoff as he walked slowly, leafing through the various papers.

“Hey Geoffrey,” he greeted. Geoff sighed lowering the papers from his face as he walked.

“Hey Gav, you guys get back alright?” he asked.

“Hey pretty smooth flying, although the chopper will need a major refill and run before it goes out again,” he advised holding the door of the base open for Geoff as they entered.

“Yeah I figured as much, good job fixing it while you was out there though, trying to get someone to pick you up would have been a massive pain in my ass,” Gavin smiled at Geoff’s compliment and honesty, “you seem like a real jack-of-trades,” Geoff commented sitting down at the large table in the middle of the base. Gavin sat facing him slightly confused.

“Not really, I mean yeah I’m a decent mechanic and probably the best hacker in AC, but there’s no way I could do what you and Jack do… Run a city? No thanks,” he scoffed, gesturing toward the office where he could hear Jack’s muted voice along with Kdin and Caleb.

“Years, upon years of practise, trust me… it still doesn’t get any easier,” Geoff rolled his eyes, “and now I’ve just got the figures in off Joel and we need a big break soon, a big job.”

Gavin stared at him, was Geoff honestly suggesting that he plan a job? No way, he couldn’t be. Gavin fought the panic growing inside of him, Gavin had never planned a job before he wouldn’t even know where to start.

“Put it this way, you’ve been here three or so days now, you know how we work, no doubt picked up on the various dynamics,” Geoff’s voice was serious but he couldn’t prevent the slight smirk that spread across his lips at the boys growing discomfort, “so lets set this as your initiation of sorts, next big job you’re planning, twenty days should be enough for you to come up with something.”

Gavin didn’t know what to say. He don’t whether to be honoured or terrified at the prospect of planning a group heist big enough to bring in the numbers that Geoff was hinting at, the only upside of the entire thing was that he didn’t have to worry about keeping everyone alive, just low enough that if they did get shot they’d be able to recover without a huge hassle.

“Right I’ll leave you to it, feel free to ask the other guys for some pointers but if I get that any of them have done it for you, then you’re out instantly, understand?” Geoff’s voice had gone deadly again, his eyes dark as Gavin held his gaze and gave a stiff nod.

“Yeah, yeah sure, twenty days… I can do that,” he stammered. Geoff smiled at him gathering together the papers that Joel had given him and standing.

“I’ll leave you to it then, should probably go help Jackie with the running of our city,” and with that he left, leaving Gavin to bury his face in his hands tugging at the front of his hair until he was sure he was going to start going bald. ‘Where do you even start when planning a heist! How many places would they have to hit to gain a decent amount of cash?’ Gavin stared at the map in front of him, ringing his mind for any form of concept that would even start a thought process.

He came up empty.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey sorry I've not updated so long and then posted up this measly piece, I've been working this week and haven't managed to stay at least one chapter ahead of posting. Aiming on getting a minimum of two done tonight and a new chapter should be up in a couple days.  
> As always hope you're enjoying and feedback is forever loved an welcome :) xoxo


	6. Chapter 6

That evening Gavin didn’t go back to the apartments with everyone else, instead he’d stayed late in the surveillance department and watched the city scrape in to an evening flurry and eventual silence.

He’d watched as Jack pulled out of the base’s garage, flicking between city cameras as they drove toward the flats only to find out that they stopped around the two block radius of the apartments. He’d gone back to watching people then, painting stories behind his eyes for each person he watched.

Girls with bleached and thinning hair that stood on street corners, their clothing short and tacky in vain attempts to look desirable to the desperate. Gavin created their back stories.

The girl in the leather skirt and red top was doing this to put herself through med school. She didn’t walk in the same broken way as the others and her dark hair was scrapped back in to a stylish bun, but she still had scraped knees and smudges at the edge of her lipstick.  
Another pair were obviously friends, a tag team for those with a bit more adventure in their blood. But the bruise marks on their arms and necks shone through the centimetres of makeup they’d applied to the areas, they were hookers that belong to a pimp. They didn’t do this for any other reason than they had no other choice, if they didn’t do it they’d be dead within the day.

He watched as a couple left a restaurant in another part of the city, the man kissing the woman sweetly as he placed her in a taxi and waved goodbye, spinning around with a large smile on his face once he thought the car was out of view.

Gavin knew how some of the taxi men could be in this city and he followed it until it stopped outside one of the decent hotels and the woman got out, greeting the tired looking doorman as he held open the glass doors and leaned back against the wall once he thought no one was watching.Gavin couldn’t help but think how hard everyone seemed to work in this city just to get by, not even on a liveable wage some of them, but despite their tiredness they all seemed relatively happy in their existence. Gavin wished that he could say the same for himself.

He’d got in to crime after some financial trouble. The new city had gripped him tight with gambling, hookers, drugs. He’d driven himself in to the ground with it all until he was completely broke. That’s when he’d ran in to Cole’s men.

Being kicked out of another club, for trying to get a touch without paying, he’d been scraping himself of the sidewalk when a friendly hand had handed him a fresh bottle of water.

The man had made him an offer to work for Cole, a creditable drug dealer who used to run throughout Achievement City, but fell apart once Geoff gained most of the territory, running small deals of low class drugs around the city. He’d accepted and become a usual face around the city, flirting with the whores and junkies, getting more people in to debt just like he had been. 

A few months later and he was back on the right side of the law, working in one of the small garages around Achievement City, fixing cars and not asking questions when they came in with bullet holes and scorch marks. He’d been paid highly for his silence, it was just unfortunate that some of his team hadn’t liked the money as much as he had; the place burned to the ground after just a couple years and the case was brushed under the rug by the police.

The money he’d been left with had been enough to keep him through the slump, an addiction to alcohol following in his wake as he ran his hand and head at hacking.  
He’d gotten good, but not good enough to hide his tracks in those few months and he’d been dragged kicking and screaming in to the police station and away from his beloved, empty bottled filled apartment.

Imprisoned for four years on hacking charges he’d gained friends on the inside and outside, getting in touch with the InnerPartySystem, a group of hackers that paid mercs to do their dirty work and came off rich from it. Gavin worked himself through the ranks for years before they directly crossed Ramsey, the job backlash that had ended his life and got him hooked in to something else that he had no way out of.

True it wasn’t as bad as the past. He was clean from drugs and whores, he only drank in moderation if at all. But he couldn’t deny that were times that he wished those drunken and high evening had ended his life when he was miserable.

He gone in search then, knowing that Geoff kept some form of hard liquor in the Fake AH Base, ending up with an almost full bottle of unlabelled vodka and half a bottle of whiskey. Drinking himself in to a state, by five in the morning the memories of past nights and friends and drugs and drinks were rushing past the back of his eyelids as he slumped against his desk and fell in to darkness.

\-----

“MORNING GAVIN!” was his alarm the next day as Michael slammed in to his surveillance room, the door ricocheting off the wall as he entered. Gavin groaned, pressing his hands to his temples as he attempted to stand, falling off his chair and to the floor.

“Jesus dude, what the fuck were you doing last night?” Michael asked, lowering his voice slightly as he moved closer and took note of the two bottles on the lad’s desk. Gavin groaned in response as he was hauled to his feet by the shorter man.

Gavin’s head swam as he rocked on his feet, the majority of his weight on the other as he woke up, he felt his head lurch as he lifted it and let it fall back of its own accord coughing up a gag as he did.

“Woah, woah, no puking on the equipment, come on,” Michael hauled him from the room quickly, guiding him in to the elevators so he could take him home. He only stopped for a couple seconds to get a message to Geoff through the receptionist who watched Gavin warily before nodding and was dialling before Michael even left the front desk practically carrying Gavin.

Gavin figured that he must have passed out in the back of the car. It smelt like leather and gun powered, but there was the familiar scent of his team surrounding him as Michael drove them through the city. He faintly remembered Michael easing him from the car, carrying him bridal style down the halls of the apartments as he muttered,  
‘It’s a good fucking job you weigh nothing kid’ ‘If you dare puke on my shirt I will kill you myself’.

Then there was blank space before Gavin felt himself being lowered on to something soft and cool as his clothes were shed with little resistance and accompanied by more muttering from Michael,  
‘Why does one man have so much hair, come on just comply a little these jeans are difficult to get off’ ‘If you vomit in my bed I won’t be happy’.

He’d fallen back in to unconsciousness surrounded by Michael, everything smelt of him and Gavin pushed his face in to the smell, inhaling deeply and pulling the duvet around him tightly.

\-----

When he woke up the room was dark, he could hear footsteps above him and the low mumble of a television in the other room. He rolled the air shifting around him and sliding coolly across his skin as he sat up. He was only in his boxers, his jeans and t-shirt flung casually over the arm chair in the corner of the room. 

Hearing a cough in the other room reminded him that he wasn’t alone and he pushed himself unsteadily to his feet, falling against the wall in front of him as his head rang. ‘What the fuck did I drink?’ he wondered quietly shielding his eyes as he stepped from the bed room.

Late afternoon sun was filling the hall and living room beyond as Michael lazed on the couch in a pair of boxers and wife-beater, one arm was stretched behind his head showing off the worked muscle beneath the skin while the other rested beside him, his hand stretched out across his stomach with the fingertips just brushing beneath the waist band of his boxers.

Gavin had never seen the man with his glasses on until now and the black frames shocked him slightly as he turned and grinned at him.

“Hey Gav, feeling any better?” he asked kindly, pushing himself over the back of the couch and sauntering over to him. Gavin felt very small and bare in front of the other man wishing that he’d at least grabbed his shirt from the chair before leaving.

“Er, yeah, thanks for bringing me back,” he mumbled trying to hide his body slightly with his arms and failing at still looking laid back and chilled as he squinted in the sun light. Michael smiled one-sidely at him, the glasses aiding in the boy-ish attitude that seemed to radiate from him.

“You want to go for a shower while I make you something to eat?” he asked, adding that Gavin couldn’t have any asprin on an empty stomach. Gavin nodded at that shuffling back in to the darkness of Michael’s room and toward the en-suite.

He helped himself to one of Michael’s shirt’s after his shower (and a pair of boxers but he hoped Michael wouldn’t notice that) before heading back in to the living room to find Michael plating up two plates of bacon and eggs with hash browns in the kitchen along a cup of coffee for himself and a glass of water for Gavin.

“Good shower?” Michael asked, noting Gavin’s slightly damp hair and the colour now in his cheeks.

“Yeah, thanks again, feel a bit more human now,” Gavin admitted taking a seat at the small breakfast bar, facing Michael as he slid the food and water towards Gavin who smiled in thanks.

They ate in relative silence until there was nothing but bacon grease on the plates and Gavin had all but finished the large pint of water.

“So what happened last night Gav? Geoff thought you were staying behind to plan,” Michael asked, his voice was unsure as he looked through his eye lashes at the other man.

Gavin thought a moment, he couldn’t remember why he’d thought drinking would change anything. Maybe he thought the liquor would kill him, maybe it had, and unfortunately immortality had the annoying habit of bringing you back whatever you did apparently.

Gavin shrugged in response, “Old habits die hard I guess.” It was the first time he’d ever admitted an addiction to anyone (even if it wasn’t the most direct way of saying it), even people in his past teams hadn’t cared enough to notice when Gavin would drink himself in to a state that could take days to work off.

But Gavin felt like he could trust Michael, the guy had helped him and taken him back to his apartment to keep an eye on him rather than just dropping him off and leaving him to wake up alone.

“Hey…” Michael said softly, reaching across the counter slightly but stopping himself from grabbing Gavin’s hand as he looked up at him, “you don’t need to do that shit you know.” Gavin watched him with wide eyes, their eyes locked as Gavin reached toward Michael’s handing holding on to it.

“Thanks Michael,” he smiled, giving Michael’s hand a quick squeeze before pulling it back and standing.

Michael wanted to chase his touch, he wanted to hold Gavin’s hand, he wanted to hug him and make him feel better and help in any way he could with Gavin’s past. He might not have lived as long as Michael, but it was clear that this kid had some shit in his past.

Before Michael could act in any way that he might regret later Gavin was pushing his hands through his hair and dismissing himself. Thanking Michael again he disappeared from the living room, leaving Michael with nothing but the click of the front door and a bunch of dirty pots.


	7. Chapter 7

Gavin spent the majority of that night awake and studying over multiple maps of Achievement City and it’s surrounding areas.

In a sense planning a hit should be easy, Fake AH owed most if not every business in Achievement City in one form or another, if he didn’t have a claim to direct ownership he definitely had people planted there hell he even had some cops and departments on his payroll to make everything easier for them if they were ever caught. And he didn't have to worry about any of them dying for real, just make sure they weren't too exposed if they got downed.

The only thing that really worried Gavin would be the pay-out. Geoff had said they needed something big, which wasn’t a surprise given the scale of his empire and connections, but that meant that Gavin had a very limited pool to dig through.

There was always the banks that they could hit, they would bring in a good few thousands each, but they were well protected by security, police, and SWAT and Gavin wasn’t quite sure he was ready to plan something that big yet.

The alternatives were some of the more expensive stores in Achievement City. Jewellery stores and designer stores were always a good bet, but Gavin had to admit that he enjoyed the lap of luxury at times and he didn’t want any chances of them getting barred.

The other options were convenience stores and gas stations. The edges of the city were lined with gas stops, and those close to the boarders or sparse land were pretty damn expensive. 

Picking out a few he began his research, at least one of them had to have a decent pool of cash that could marginally impress Geoff. 

‘ _Would fucking help if I knew how much he was expecting me to get,_ ’ Gavin thought to himself a few hours of research later as he stretched, pulling off his head phones and glancing out over his balcony.

The sun had just started to rise casting fire across the tops of the hills as it rose. Glancing at his watch Gavin figured that everyone else would be starting to move and wake up soon as well, he could already here muted thuds above him as someone (he presumed Ray) walked around sleepily.

Scrubbing his eyes he closed the laptop beside him and pushed up from the desk. He wasn’t too sure of what the plan was today, he knew that some of the other guys had jobs out in the city that needed sorting, but he figured that meant that he’d be left to plan in peace.

After washing and fixing himself a quick breakfast of toast and red bull he figured that he owed Geoff an apology for missing yesterday. He probably needed to apologise to Michael as well for making him miss a day’s pay. Throwing the empty can in the trash and plate in the sink he trotted down the hall, another can of drink in his hand as he went up to Geoff’s apartment.

Scared of how Geoff would react Gavin chose to bypass every excuse that came to his head just straight up apologised.

But Geoff hadn’t been expecting an apology and when Gavin turned up at his door; eyes tired and face drawn, he felt nothing but sadness for the boy. After too many years to count Geoff knew that everyone had their reasons for drinking, for sleeping around, for doing drugs, hell even for killing in the first place, and he didn’t expect any one of his guys to say sorry for having a snap.

Gavin drinking himself in to an abyss and having Michael take care of him all day was like Ryan going on a murder spree, except with a lot less casualties. Ryan never apologised, unless he accidently hurt one of the others, and he was usually a lot more difficult to calm down unless you didn't mind getting a bit bitten and sore.

Gavin obviously felt like he had to say sorry though and Geoff respected that, placing a hand on his shoulder before deciding that it wasn’t enough and pulling him in for a tight hug.

Gavin hugged back, clinging to the older man’s shoulders and resting his nose in the crook of Geoff’s neck.

“Seriously though dude, don’t worry about it, just maybe try a different distraction next time, yeah?” Geoff joked pulling away and giving him a wink. Gavin blushed slightly and grinned,

“I’ll be sure to, thanks for understanding.”

“Quit thanking me will ya, look we’re all heading out to the offices in a few minutes, in fact I think Michaels meeting us outside with the Roosevelt, why don’t you go down and wait for him and we’ll meet you out there,” Geoff suggested pushing Gavin back toward the elevators with a small push. Gavin nodded, thanking Geoff again before he could stop himself, and jumped in to the waiting elevator. 

He leant against the back wall as it whirred slowly down the building, pinging early on Gavin’s floor. He looked up to be met with Meg’s bright purple hair as she stepped in to the elevator.

“Morning Gav, feeling better?” she asked cheerily. Gavin nodded. Despite the woman’s obviously kind nature and short stature Gavin couldn’t help but feel a little intimidated by her, he couldn’t even pinpoint why? Maybe it was the general ‘don’t fuck with me’ vide she gave off, or maybe it was due to the fact that she turned Ryan in to puddle of goop every time she walked by or spoke to him.

“Erm, yeah thanks, you sleep at Ryan’s last night or something?” he asked, taking in her lack of makeup and scrapped back hair as well as the shirt almost three sizes too big for her and obviously belonging to Ryan.

“Wasn’t much sleep involved, but I did stay the night, sorry if we kept you up,” she laughed. Gavin had to admit that he’d heard very little, just the odd murmur or thump when he’d taken his headphones off to go get a drink.

“Oh no, no, you didn’t keep me up, I was up anyway doing some stuff for Geoff,” he babbled, the elevator doors sliding open on the bottom floor and releasing the pair who walked out through the main doors; Michael pulling up with the Roosevelt and stepping out with a grin.

“Oh your initiation, yeah I heard, well good luck, I’ll see you guys later… Hey Michael!” Meg waved and walked down the street to where she’d parked her car last night, the two lads watched her go.

“How’s the head?” Michael asked as Gavin came to lean on the car beside him.

“Better, hey thanks for letting me sleep at yours yesterday, it means a lot,” Gavin scuffed his feet on the ground unable to meet Michael’s eyes since they were covered with large aviators.

“Don’t worry about it dude, seriously, I mean what are friends for if not to make sure you go in to permadeath,” Michael laughed, nudging his shoulder in to Gavin’s making him grin. They were about to say more when the rest of the team emerged from the front doors.

Ray quizzing Ryan on the numerous bruises covering his neck as he tried to hide them behind his jacket collar. Geoff shook his head in dismay as Michael walked around to the driver’s side, Gavin climbed in beside him leaving Geoff and Ray to get in the back while Jack and Ryan hung on to the sides.

\-----

As usual, once at the base everyone split off in to their jobs for that day, Geoff having a meeting with the bigwigs of the company meant that he’d turned in to professional boss on the drive down and it was tough for Gavin to grab him before he headed off to the conference rooms.

“Hey Geoff, Geoff!” Gavin called worming past the busy work force.

“What’s up now Gav, I’ve gotta go be the big scary boss man,” Geoff moped, pointing behind him where Gavin could see Burnie, Gus, and Matt already talking.

“I just needed to make sure that I’m good to head out and scout some locations,” he asked, feeling like a child asking his teacher if he could use the toilet.

“Yeah course, don’t worry about it, you drive?” Geoff asked, Gavin shook his head truth was he could drive just not well and probably not at all in the cars that Fake AH had to offer, “Right go find Lindsay she shouldn’t be too busy today, she’ll take you wherever you need to go, good luck,” he order backing toward the door quickly as the final few higher-ups filtered in.

“Thanks Geoff, you too,” Gavin beeped, waving as Geoff was yanked inside and the door slammed shut.

It wasn’t until he was wandering through the maze of corridors that Gavin had no idea where Lindsay would be. He would have guessed the B-Teams floor but he was fucked if he knew which floor that was since he mainly just followed the rest of the crew around.

In the end he managed to run in to Michael as he made a bee line for the garages and asked him.

“Erm, she should be in mechanics with Jack today, I think,” he rambled stuffing the rolls of ammunition in to his duffel bag, “just take the fourth elevator down to B-1, you’ll find them,” he zipped up the bag gesturing back down the hall before waving a quick bye and disappearing in to a stairwell.

Gavin mumbled his thanks to the air and sure enough found Jack and Lindsay under two separate cars, singing at the top of their lungs and way off key to some song on the radio.

He wandered over to where Lindsay’s legs were poking out from beneath a large red pick-up truck, laying on the roller board beside her and pulling himself under.

“Hey Lindsay,” he greeted, turning his head so his nose didn’t scrape the underside of the truck.

“Oh hey Gav, long time no see, what brings you down here?” she asked, looking sideways at him as she continued to work.

“Oh well, I was erm… wondering if I could ask a favour?” 

Lindsay raised an eyebrow at him, pausing momentarily to look at him directly.

“It’s nothing extreme, I just need someone to drive me around the city so I can get a look at could places for my initiation,” he rambled. Before Lindsay could say anything he was yanked from beneath the truck, a foot between his legs as he stared up at Jack.

“Who died and made you king, Gav?” he joked. Gavin could feel himself going red as he lay beneath the man, Lindsay rolling out beside him as he began mumbling and stuttering his way through the reasons with nothing actually coherent coming out.

“Jesus Gavin calm down will you, I was only joking,” Jack said, holding out a hand to help him off the board, Gavin took it, standing shakily beside him, “but seriously why do you need someone to drive you?” his voice was softer now, kinder, the same kind of tone that all of the crew seemed to use when they started worrying just a little too much about the new guy.

“It’s just that I don’t drive well in the city, especially not in these cars,” he gestured past Jack’s shoulder where a line of no doubt expensive and custom cars sat gleaming in the florescent lighting, “I wouldn’t want to ruin any of your hard work,” he mumbled the last bit and couldn’t help but jump when Lindsay threw an arm around his shoulder, an oily rag hanging from her hand.

“Leave the guy alone Jack, we haven’t all driven the biggest dealers around the city,” she taunted, Jack stuck his tongue out at her as she pulled her arm from around Gavin and continued to wipe her hands; jack returning back to the underside of the car he’d been working on.

“Don’t worry about it Gav, I’ll take you wherever you need to go, just give me a couple minutes to get changed, yeah?” she didn’t wait for Gavin’s reply as she began unzipping the front of her grey overalls, revealing the bright blue lacy bra beneath it.

Gavin couldn’t help the short stare as she undressed, the blue of the lacy standing out against the pale skin of her chest. He only managed to pull his gaze away when she turned to grab her t-shirt from the top of the tool box, he was extremely thankful for her bottom half being more covered, even if it was just by a pair of large boxer shorts that she stuffed in to her jeans before fastening them and slipping her sneakers on.

“Ready to go?” she grinned, noticing the flush in Gavin’s cheeks as he nodded stiffly and stepped aside so she could lead the way and pick a car.

“So where is it we’re going?” she asked scanning over the cars.

“Mainly the east side and a small trip down south,” he choked, following Lindsay to a nondescript silver Declasse Premier, “we’re just checking out a few petrol stations, see what their set ups are like.”

Lindsay nodded firing up the car once Gavin had shut the door and steering it out of the garages which opened on to a large back court with high barbed fence surrounding it. She pulled toward the gate, lowering the window enough that the security could see her face and pulled out in to the traffic.

Gavin couldn’t help but wonder to himself, as he sat clinging to the handle of his door:  
One. Why everyone seemed so cool with just getting naked and we’re so confident in their bodies they just gave off an entirely ‘fuck it’ attitude.  
and Two. Why the fuck they all drove like complete and utter maniacs through the centre of the city!

\-----

That evening Gavin meant to go back to planning. He and Lindsay had managed to get around all of Gavin’s potential hit spots with ease, checking out the security set up and how easy it’d be to get out of once the robbery was done. After each look Gavin would make a couple notes in his phone about the cameras and employees, taking in account whether they guy behind the counter had a gun or panic button. 

Back at the base he’d gone straight to surveillance and worked on hacking his way in to their cameras. By three he had them all, up and running on the various screens watching as customers came and went. Those closer to the airport in comfortable clothes as they grabbed quick snacks and sandwiches and drinks after avoiding the airplane food, and others further in the south with big trucks ready for the road trip out in to the deserts and coastal areas beyond.

He left for dinner at six that evening with the guys that were left in the base, meaning it was only himself and the three older guys since both Ray and Michael were out on stake out missions; Geoff wasting no time once their food had arrived to ask Gavin how his planning was coming.

Given he had seventeen days left before he was expected to pitch Geoff was relatively surprised at the lad’s focus.

“I’ve got a couple places on plan, got them on the cameras already after Lindsay took me ‘round today,” he explained, picking at the food on his plate while the other tore in to the slabs of meat, bread and sauce.

“That’s good to hear, is there anything you need help with?” Geoff asked through a mouthful of burger; ketchup sticking to the hairs of his moustache.

“Not really, would help you could give me a minimum number though,” he admitted, picking up a chip and chewing it slowly while Geoff thought. He tilted his as he thought almost as though he was running through all the figures in his head before he looked at Jack and frowned.

Gavin would be lying if he said the couple didn't fascinate him. They were probably the strongest out of everyone; seemingly able to communicate with just simple facial expressions and sparse noises. Geoff turned to look at Ryan who cocked an eyebrow, swallowing the mouthful of hotdog before speaking.

“Mine generally costs anywhere between one and a hundred grand, but I doubt he’s gonna need that much to start off with,” he said adding the only verbalisation to the otherwise silent conversation. Ryan chuckled as he glanced at Gavin, the lad’s eyes wide as he took in the information.

‘ _One hundred grand! Maybe I should have hit a bank,_ ’ he thought looking back to Geoff as he cleared his throat.

“Let’s say anything over ten K and you’re in the clear,” Jack jumped in.

“Pretty much you’re paying to be here so you’re first lot of weaponry that the company has to buy, you’re paying for,” Geoff clarified, Gavin stared at him. He could ten grand easy, the places he’d been looking at had a usual take between ten and twenty each week, but the new information that he was pretty much paying to be apart of crew he hadn’t wanted to join in the first place was overwhelming.

The table fell silent as everyone went back to eating, the conversation dropped by each one of the gents while Gavin was sent in to a downward spiral of hatred again.

He’d just been starting to like these guys. Like the idea of having a team again that pushed him outside of just a computer hacker. But here they were pretty much demanding payment for his death and compulsory membership to the crew. Fuck that!

Gavin suddenly realised he wasn’t hungry anymore and stood up, making to walk out of the diner when a large hand grabbed his sleeve. 

“Where you going Gav?” Geoff asked, Gavin turning to see that it was Ryan who had grabbed him, his brows furrowed at the man’s sudden urge to leave.

“I just… I just need to get some air… you guys can go without me, I’ll… I’ll get back h… back to the apartments on my own,” he stammered pulling his sleeve from Ryan’s soft grip.

“Alright lad, be careful,” Geoff called, watching Gavin leave. It wasn’t quiet dark yet but the street lamps had started to turn on, he waited for Gavin to pass beneath the second one before he sent Ryan to follow him.

“Dumb kid, never carries a gun,” he muttered to Ryan’s back as he quickly left the diner as well, staying in the shadows and keeping just a few paces back from Gavin.

Geoff couldn’t blame his outbursts, the guy had been shot, come back and forced to jump straight back in to work with a crew that had formally been his rivals, but it didn’t mean he liked it. Gavin was here now, and under Geoff’s roof he had to live by Geoff’s rules that was how everything worked, that was how he’s lasted so long at the top.

Everything called for cooperation. From a simple team to a completely different kind of relationship that consisted not only of Jack and himself but also Ryan and Ray and Michael and Lindsay and Meg, hell even some of the others as times, and Geoff wouldn’t deny the fact that he did find Gavin attractive and wouldn’t say no if he wished to join them. But that sure as hell wasn’t going to happen if Gavin didn’t start working and thinking as part of the team.

Jack and Geoff left the diner soon after finishing their meals, while Ryan’s remained half-finished and Gavin’s basically untouched. They drove back to the apartments knowing it was going to be quiet night. With a quick check in with Michael and Ray to make sure they were safe and settled on their jobs, they returned to domestic normalcy by putting on a crap film and falling asleep nestled together on the couch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Starting to see a growing pattern of people just being or getting half naked around Gavin... It's really enjoyable to confuse him and make him squirm.
> 
> Hope you guys are enjoying it as much as me :)


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Smut in bound... nothing serious just handjobs.

Ryan ended up following Gavin out of the city and toward the coast. He’d only made two stops since leaving the diner, the first was a small convenience store that he left with a straining plastic bag and the other was a silent carpark where he hijacked a car and began to drive messily through the traffic.

Ryan was thankful that he seemed to know these streets a lot better than Gavin did and managed to keep up with him easily after hot wiring a motorbike and following him in to the evening traffic.

Gavin didn’t stop until he reached the coast. A sheer cliff of grey and black rock that rose from the churning waters. The only way down was to jump or risk the slim path that wove itself down the side of cliff, many mortals had taken their chances at a jump but Ryan was thankful that Gavin chose the path; watching as he scrambled and skidded down the makeshift path.

He only followed when he was sure Gavin had got down the first slope and started the second, going slowly so that he didn’t make much noise as he followed the younger, his eyes slowly adjusting to the now unlit darkness.

Minutes later and Ryan could hear the first crash of waves below him along with the shuffling of pebbles as Gavin walked across them and sat looking out over the water with his knees pulled to his chest in an attempt to protect him from the cold.

Ryan stayed at the back of the beach, not trusting his footing on the pebbles as he watch Gavin pull the large bottle of whiskey from the carrier bag. The moonlight glinted weakly of the amber liquid as Gavin tilted the bottle, a quarter already missing from what he’d drank in the car.

‘ _What the fuck are you doing?_ ’ Gavin thought to himself as he stared at the bottle, ‘ _Ignoring everything for a while, I can’t die after all,_ ’ he managed to justify himself enough as he unscrewed the cap of the bottle and tipped it back against his lips, enjoying the burn as it slid down his throat to his empty stomach. He coughed when he pulled the bottle away, spluttering curses as he set the bottle down beside him and leant back on the pebbles, he wasn’t comfortable by any means but he was at peace even with Ryan following him.

“You want some Ryan!” he yelled to the sky as he held up the bottle, he knew Ryan was following him and that was only affirmed as he listened to the pebbles shift in the distance, the noise coming closer until Ryan was sat beside him and made an attempt to take the bottle.

Gavin sat back up, pulling the bottle from Ryan’s closing hand and pulling it against his chest like a comforter, “Are you gonna drink it? Or just take it away?” he asked, eyeing Ryan suspiciously.

“I don’t drink Gavin,” his voice was soft but monotonous and lacklustre in feeling, a harsh contrast in the kindness that Gavin was used to off Michael and Geoff.

“Then you don’t need the bottle,” he decided, leaning back on one arm and using the other to tilt the bottle back against his lips. Ryan didn’t try to stop him, he figured that if Gavin wanted to talk he would but he sure as hell wasn’t going to force him.

They sat in silence for several minutes after that. Watching the waves slowly churn out at the horizon before lapping lazily at the shore, the moon’s light reflecting of the slight foam and sheen they left behind.

“Why don’t you drink Ry?” Gavin slurred looking up at the older man from where he’d laid back on the pebbles again.

“Why do you drink Gav?” Ryan asked back, looking down at him and tracking the sluggish movements as Gavin shoved himself back in to a seated position beside him.

“I asked first,” Gavin decided, swishing the now half empty bottle back against his chest.

Ryan thought for a moment before he shrugged, “Never really had an interest in it, beer tastes gross, I’m not too fond of being drunk… I don’t know, not my vice I guess,” he smirked slightly to himself as Gavin registered Ryan’s after.

“So what is your vice? Like how do you make sense of all…. THIS!” Gavin gestured around him and to the gun that hung at Ryan’s him.

“Well you can’t really make sense of it… hell we’re a bunch of immortals that run a fucking city by being feared criminals,” he admitted chuckling slightly to himself, aware of the lazy gaze that was passing over him, “but my vice? I don’t know, I guess you could say it’s sex,” he looked back to Gavin who was frowning at him, the bottle hanging loosely between his legs.

“That’s a lot less harmful than mine,” Gavin muttered, his eyes focused on the tide going in and out in front of him. He felt Ryan’s shrug beside him.

“Maybe on a personal health level yes, but you can end up hurting a lot of other people,” Ryan’s mind flicked over the numbers of people that he’d had to leave or lose contact with him cause they’d wanted something more, something Ryan couldn’t give with this kind of life.

“I like drinking,” Gavin started, speaking carefully, his words slow they didn’t slur, “it blocks everything out for a while, makes me feel good when I don’t want to feel or think,” Ryan’s focus was on the young man beside him as Gavin came clean about what he was thinking, the alcohol aiding in destroying the filter between his brain and mouth.

“Its just, after the last job, with my old team, I… I… wanted to call it quits, try to get back right before everything went wrong again, you know? And then you shot me and there… there was little part of me, a bit of that was thankful, cause it meant that I didn’t… I didn’t have to bail on anyone,” Gavin paused, trying to swallow the lump that was slowly forming in his throat, tears that had gone unshed for years threatening to break loose as he continued, forcing himself to get angrier than he felt to try and fight off the sadness.

“And then I fucking came back! I came back to crew that were my fucking enemy! Made to play spy for you fucks and fall for you all, thinking I might actually start to fit in! But no. I have to make a job, something I’ve never done before, in order to pay for a fucking membership in to a crew I didn’t want part of in the first place!”

Gavin was yelling now genuinely annoyed, but not quite angry. He could feel Ryan’s gaze locked on him as he clutched the neck of the bottle in his fist.  
Part of him wanted to scream and throw it in to the ocean, another part wanted to beat Ryan around the head and not stop until it was a bloody pulp, the rest of him was drained and just wanted to shut down and cry for days; scream in to his pillow or someone’s shoulder or something. Instead he leant toward what he did best, blocking everything out and crushing it as he tilted his head back and began to chug the bottle of whiskey in his hand.

Too soon the bottle of yanked from his mouth, the liquid spilling down his cheek, and chin; soaking in to his shirt as he was dragged by the shoulders until he was facing Ryan.

I took Gavin a couple blinks to register the gleam in Ryan’s eyes as tears. Ryan’s hands were tight on Gavin’s shoulders as he spoke, forcing Gavin to listen to him.

“Please don’t Gavin, don’t ever think that shit. You’re here now and yeah Geoff can be a prick but we all care, you’re part of the team and, if you wanted to be, that could be a hell of a lot more. You’re brilliant Gavin. You’re amazing at what you do, you’re an amazing person,” Ryan’s voice cut off as Gavin pushed towards him, not thinking as he locked his lips over the older man’s and used is momentum to push Ryan backward until he was lay back on the pebbles, Gavin straddling his waist.

The kiss was drunk and messy, more teeth than lips and tasted like whiskey but Ryan kissed back eagerly as his hands shifted to grip Gavin’s hips. The younger moaned at the contact, one hand tugging lightly at Ryan’s hair while the other clutched at the leather of his jacket.

The whiskey was forgotten as Gavin got a taste for Ryan’s vice, grinding his hips in the gent’s and making him groan his hands inching up and under Gavin’s shirt to scratch back down roughly. Gavin moaned, his back arching away from the touch as Ryan sat them both up peppering Gavin’s jaw and neck with sloppy kisses when he tilted his head back.

Ryan sucked on the skin happily, enjoying the small keens and moaning that Gavin made at each touch. Gavin tilted his head back down to look at Ryan’s face as the man rocked their hips together slowly. Ryan’s pupils were blown enough that the moonlight could barely reach the sharp blue that usually shone bright and proud, with a grin he pulled Ryan’s face up to meet his, their lips meeting in a harsh frenzy again as they rocked.

Gavin groaned as Ryan’s hands moved to grab his ass, grinding their erections together with more force.

“Please, Ryan,” he gasped.

“What?” Ryan asked, his voice husky and lustful as he pulled his bottom lip from between Gavin’s teeth, resting their foreheads together as they panted for air. Their breathing causing clouds of mist to form between them against the chilly coastal air.

“Touch me,” Gavin begged, punctuation his sentence by grinding down hard on Ryan’s clothed member.

Ryan wasn’t one to argue as he pushed Gavin on to his back, using his weight to hold the lad in place as he straddled Gavin’s thighs, placing a hand over his cock and rubbing through his jeans. Gavin moaned, his head rocking back against the pebbles as he felt Ryan unfasten the button and zip of his jeans, a cold hand brushing over the fabric on his boxers that were now the only thing stopping Ryan’s hand as he ghosted it.

When Gavin looked back at him, Ryan pulled Gavin’s lips back towards his, kissing him deeply as he slipped his hand beneath the cotton.

Gavin gasped at the cold air but was soon groaning as Ryan began to jerk him of with long languid motions, his thumb sweeping over the slit and used the precum there as lube.

“Fuck,” he groaned, bucking in to the touch. Ryan let him, moving his hand slowly while Gavin matched his thrusts, fucking his fist until he was a panting mess.

“Are you close?” he asked, speeding up his movements as Gavin’s body tensed beneath him, cumming in hot spurts over his shirt and Ryan’s hand. Ryan let him thrust lazily in to his hand as he rode through his orgasm, kissing softly at his face and jaw before Gavin directed his attention back to his lips, his hand soft on his cheek while the other wound loosely in his hair.

Ryan smiled, wiping Gavin cum on the lad’s shirt before pulling him back up.

Gavin turned away shyly as he sat up, tucking his dick back in to his pants and taking in the mess of his shirt.

“Fuck… er, sorry about Ry… Do you want me to?” he motioned to the obviously straining erection still trapped in Ryan jeans. Ryan shook his head, brushing away the offer.

“Don’t worry about, here take off your shirt, you can wear my jacket,” Ryan shrugged out of his jacket, fighting off the chill as it hit his bare arms. Gavin complied, quickly pulling off the ruined shirt and throwing it to the ocean, before grabbing Ryan’s jacket and tugging it on. It was way too big and probably looked stupid but Gavin found that he suddenly felt a lot safer and calmer.

“You ready to go home?” Ryan asked half standing and offering a hand to Gavin. Gavin nodded thankful for the hand as he stood unsteadily, resting most of his weight on Ryan as the alcohol he chugged made a reappearance now that he we stood.

“Think you can hold on to my back? It’d be a lot quicker,” Ryan suggested, Gavin nodded without complaint as Ryan knelt in front of him and Gavin climbed on, wrapping his arm around the man’s shoulders tightly.

True to his word it took less time to get back up the cliff than it had to get down. Ryan opted against the bike he’d stole and went for the car Gavin had been in instead, placing Gavin in the passenger seat while he climbed in the driver’s side.

No sooner had they set off Gavin was asleep, nestled in Ryan’s jacket he was warm and safe. His body felt a weird combination of a lead weight and yet he was floating. He slightly remembered Ryan laying him in a bed but everything felt like a dream as he brushed it off and let sleep take him completely.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I'm starting to accept my title as FreeWood / FreeTurnWood trash (buries myself in a dumpster where I belong)...  
> P.S. Sorry it's so short, I wrote this at like 1/2am and needed to get it up... more soon


	9. Chapter 9

Of three things Gavin was certain of when he woke up the next morning:  
One. His head was pounding like he’d been stood next to a concert speaker all evening and his neck was tender like all the muscles had been strained.  
Two. It was Ryan’s jacket was flung over the chair against his desk.  
and Three. He was way too warm in his jeans.

He scrunched his eyes together as he scrubbed his face and forced himself in to a seated position, his stomach lurching dangerously at the movement sending him back to a lying position. When he opened his eyes again he was on his side his gaze focusing on a sealed bottle of water atop his bedside table with a small note, ‘ _ **Sleep well, told Geoff to let you stay home today. Take care of yourself. Ryan.**_ ’

Gavin frowned down at the note, the memories of last night blurry in his mind as he took tentative sips from the water bottle.

There were bits he could remember. He remembered the diner where Geoff had taken Jack, Ryan and himself for dinner, and he remembered leaving after Geoff told him the figures and reasons for his heist. He remember going to the store and buying a large bottle of whiskey (which explained the headache) and how he was completely aware that Ryan was following him as he’d gone to the beach, but after getting to the beach everything seemed to blur together.

He could recall talking to Ryan but the topic of conversations evaded him as he pushed him to leave the bedroom, squinting at the bright sunlight, it had to be at least midday.

Gavin ignored the thrashing of his stomach as he threw two pieces of bread in to the toaster, still holding Ryan’s note in his hands as he leant against the counter, enjoying the coolness of the granite top against his forearms and stomach.

The note had obviously been written quickly, the ink thin and smoothly parted in places. Considering it was Ryan that had written the note Gavin was surprised at the light-handed penmanship, the only part that wasn’t light was toward the end of the note where Ryan had scrubbed something out harshly.

He frowned down at the note, trying to recall what had happened last night but coming up with nothing but blurred thoughts as he toast popped causing him to jump slightly. He shook his head throwing it to the counter as he turned to grab the toast, throwing in on a plate and making himself a cup of tea before returning to his bedroom.

After pulling open the blinds he went back to work, loading up the computer and sifting through the information that he’d gathered yesterday as well as managing to load up the footage of his three main hit locations.

A lot of crushing through more numbers and too many cups of tea (that had honestly left him feeling a little ill) Gavin had finalised his location.

It was a gas station south east of the main base, close enough to a safe house that they wouldn’t have to worry too much about their petrol consumption but far enough away that the whole team should be able to lose the cops by then.

Keeping up the only feed he needed Gavin moved his work to floor, spreading the multiple maps of Achievement city around him as he scribbled notes and started thinking about vehicles. 

He knew that Geoff and the crew probably had access to anything and everything he could possibly want, but Gavin being Gavin wanted something different it was just a plan of how…

\-----

Gavin didn’t realise how late it had gotten until there was a light knock at his front door. Knowing it couldn’t be anyone but the crew he barely looked up from his scrawling.

“It’s open!” he yelled. Having managed to get in to Fake AH vehicle data base from his computer he was now scanning through the reams upon reams of paper that held every car, van, truck, plane, tank, helicopter, boat, and bike that he could potentially have access to, highlighting each one as it took his fancy.

“Wow did not expecting you to be working at all today,” a deep voice scoffed from his bedroom door. 

Gavin looked up his eyes meeting with Ryan’s as he sat cross-legged on his floor. Gavin shrugged feeling the muscles in his back cry out from the movement; encouraging him to stretch and stand so he could look over his work.

“Yeah well, I’ve only got like fifteen days and I’ve just finalised where we’re hitting, so,” Gavin couldn’t help but shrug again stuffing his hands in the jeans of his pockets and becoming aware that he still wasn’t wearing a shirt.

Ryan had noticed too, his pale eyes raking over the Brit’s slim tanned torso and dark hair. He pulled his gaze away when Gavin cleared his throat gesturing toward his kitchen. Ryan shuffled out before him, saddened when he turned around to find that Gavin had grabbed a shirt from his drawer and yanked it on.

“So how was the base today?” Gavin asked keeping his tone casual as he filled the kettle, “Coffee?”

“Please, actually it was really fucking quiet,” Ryan laughed leaning back on the barstool and putting his hands in the pockets of the large black hoodie he’d worn since his jacket had been in use, “the lads are still away on stake out and both Jack and Geoff have been locked in the offices all day, apparently some guy is trying to move in on Geoff’s territory from some other city that runs beside our territory, it ain’t pretty,” Ryan shook his head slightly as Gavin passed him the steaming cup of black coffee, setting the milk and sugar on the counter between them so he could help himself.

“Some other guy? That shouldn’t be a problem for Geoff though right?” Gavin asked, pushing at the small niggling memories from the night before as he focused on the present, adding milk and sugar to his own cup of coffee.

“Wouldn’t be if it was some kid trying to bite off more than they can chew, but this ones got some power behind him, almost as much territory as Geoff from what B-Team and Surveillance have managed to gather,” Ryan told him, taking a small sip of his coffee as Gavin ran the information through his head.

It was true that in all things Achievement City and in a few other areas Geoff Ramsey and his crew were top dog, but outside of those walls there was always someone ready to threaten his territory. This new guy had been doing just that, from what B-Team and Surveillance had picked up so far is that they owned enough territory to rival Geoff’s empire and the fact that most of their’s seemed to surround his had the company on edge.

It was also clear that this dude had some big guns, he’d been showing them off by having the shipments brought in to Ramsey’s docks and then driven out the city before Geoff could get people out there.

“So what’ve you been doing all day?” Gavin asked, curiosity peaking his interest as he replaced the milk and sugar to their positions.

“Mainly dealing with mercenaries, Lunas been fucking Kovic in the offices again so we’re threatening to terminate his contract. I swear dealing with hired his a lot more hassle than it’s worth these days,” he huffed. Gavin chuckled causing Ryan to look up at him from his coffee and raise an eyebrow, “what?” he asked, confusion filling his face as Gavin shrugged.

“Didn’t expect you to be the one that dealt with the merc files… thought you would have been with Turney or something all day,” Gavin admitted, smirking at the older man.

“Oh yeah, it’s my punishment since I offered my skills to Geoff rather than him finding me… and what do you mean I would have been with Turney all day?” Ryan scoffed, slightly offended that Gavin would even imply that he had nothing better to do with his time.

“Well you do follow each other around like lost puppies, whenever anyone needs you it’s always Meg that comes running and vise versa.”

“Do not!” Ryan defended sitting up straighter in his chair before deflating again, “she was out today anyway, all the girls were, some contacts that they’re trying to get on their side,” Ryan waved his hand resting his chin on the knuckles of the other while Gavin tried to hide his smirk behind his coffee mug.

“Anyway enough about the base and it’s workers, what you got done today?” Ryan asked looking through the open bedroom door; watching the surveillance footage of the gas station as it flicked over the computer screens.

Gavin shrugged before running to the bedroom to grab his notes and plans, also coming back with Ryan’s jacket and flinging it over the chair next to him.

“Thanks for bringing me home last night, probably would have a mess of some building side otherwise,” Ryan nodded, becoming acutely aware that Gavin was either choosing to not comment on what had happened last night or couldn’t remember it at all. He pushed the thought to the back of his mind as Gavin began laying the notes out between them, shifting his mug so he wouldn’t get anymore stains on the already mug-ringed paper, and listening as Gavin began to run him through it only speaking to offer small advise on what routes were easiest to take and potential spots to lose the cops.

\-----

It was long gone midnight before Ryan got back in to his own apartment.

After their incident last night Ryan had expected at least some shyness from Gavin but it had become clear that he remembered very little of the evening. If anything it was probably a guess that Ryan had been the one to bring him home since he’d been entailed to follow him and it was his note and jacket that ended up in Gavin’s bedroom.

As he lay in bed that night Ryan couldn’t help but relieve the ideas in his head, how he thought of Gavin had changed a lot in the few days that he’d been part of the crew. He knew he cared for the man greatly and knew that he wanted to get to know him more, but he couldn’t deny that there was an essence of lust behind each of his actions.

He thought back to beach, how he’ let Gavin sit there and drink with the primary thought that it would be easier to get him home if he was passed out. But then they’d started talking about vices and when Gavin had kissed him he couldn’t stop himself from kissing back, loving the feel of Gavin’s lips against his even if teeth had got in the way at the start.

As Ryan relived the moments in his head he felt himself growing hard in his boxers, his cock twitching at every thought of Gavin’s hips rolling against his in firm practised motions while Gavin allowed Ryan to bite and suck at the curve of his neck.

He’d seen the bruises today when he’d spoke to Gavin. They weren’t dark by any means, barely nothing in comparison to the works of art that he’d left on the bodies of the other guys or girls before, but noticeable.

Ryan began to palm himself through his pants, his back arching from the bed as he grinded against his hand thinking about what it would be like to be with Gavin again. The stretch of the muscles in his arms as he clutched at the sheets while Ryan worked him over and teased him with his mouth and hands.

Ryan would love to hear Gavin beg again. Beg to be touched and given release all the while Ryan would continue to tease, giving just the lightest or quickest of motions whenever Gavin’s begs were good enough. 

Ryan brought his other hand up to his face, biting on his fist as he moaned and pushed his hand in to his boxers grasping and pumping his cock deliberately slow.

He continued to imagine Gavin spread out and naked on his bed, body covered in a thin sheen of sweat as Ryan worked him open with his tongue and fingers. Oh the noises he’d make as Ryan pressed a finger inside of him, curling it this way and that in search for that perfect spot that would Gavin melt beneath him as he worked him open, adding another finger and scissoring. 

All the while he’d whisper encouragements and dirty thoughts in to Gavin’s ear, spatter his neck and shoulders and chest with kisses and bites and licks, worshipping every inch of him until he was ready enough to be fucked.

Ryan bucked in to his hand at the thought of pushing his cock in to Gavin, imagining the moans and curses that would leak from Gavin’s lips as he filled him up completely. Ryan’s hand moved quicker along his member, matching his imagination thrust for thrust as his own gasps and moans filled the empty bedroom.

He came with a shout, pumping himself a couple more times as he worked off the high before shedding his boxers and cleaning himself up with them, and throwing them toward the laundry basket in the corner of the room.

He didn’t know if the garment made it in, he didn’t particularly care as he rolled over in to the bed, pulling the cover over him and quickly falling in to an abyss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to hell...


	10. Chapter 10

The next few days were spent in days of business, Gavin kept to his apartment most of the time having entitled the help of Ryan to move his desk and equipment in to the living room so he had more room to work and actually remembered to eat a bit more.

The only days Gavin didn’t spend in the apartment block he spent in customs and mechanics with Griffon, Jon and some of the other mechanics that Gavin rarely spoke to.

One day he managed to grab Jack and get some insight in to what his chosen safe house had to offer in terms of ordnance and parking space so that he could start sorting the teams.

As it was Gavin’s chosen house was one of the crew’s smaller ones out on a crossing island, it had room for a car and a couple bikes if things got desperate but other than that the house had very little space for the entire group.

Like the safe house out on Geoff’s island that Michael, Ray and Gavin had stayed in, the house only had a small bathroom and a kitchen/dinning area that led straight in to the garage. The living room was just a little bigger that what the lads had stayed in previous, with three large couches and electric heating in the floor and luckily three bedrooms, which meant only one person would be left out on the couch.

After gaining his information from Jack, Gavin had gone back to work. One car and two bikes meant that he had the opportunity to split everyone in to pairs, ‘But who goes with who?’ Gavin thought as he leant over the lists of vehicles and crew’s past jobs that Geoff had handed him in passing.

Ray was obviously their best shot, Ryan was pretty flawless at shooting as well, Michael was a decent shot as well but he was primarily an explosives expert so he could be the one to rob and blow the place. Geoff seemed like a pretty good all-rounder, but Jack was obviously the best driver and pilot so he’d probably be the best for get-away, Michael could go with him.

In the end it worked out that Jack and Michael would have to be on a bike, they’d be the primary target for police so it’d have to be fast and having the best rider on the handle bars was their greatest hope for getting away.

Gavin placed himself on the front line with Geoff, Ryan, and Ray they’d be responsible for keeping the police off the scene while Michael got the cash.

A large gasoline truck would be their first port of call, the explosion giving them an alibi for the two custom fire trucks that he was planning on blocking the gas station with.

The high powered water jets that he was hoping one of the mechanics could fit would be able to take out some of the police’s fire power while two gunmen took out the rest.

Deciding on that had taken a lot longer than Gavin had first realised when Michael plopped down beside him leaning heavily against him. Gavin grinned leaning back in his chair so Michael fell on to his chest as he wrapped an arm around his back.

“How’s it going boi?” Michael asked, nestling against Gavin as he leafed through the various papers of scrawl and print.

“Pretty good actually I might make it before the twenty day mark,” Gavin grinned, today was his tenth day working on the job. He still had to finalise the last two groups and figure out who was taking what route out of the city in order to lose the cops, but thanks to his need for custom fire trucks he had that time to kill.

“Fire trucks?” Michael scoffed leaning up slightly, his hand tight on Gavin’s hip, as he looked at him.

“Custom fire trucks!” Gavin defended snatching the paper back off Michael and throwing it back on the table with the rest, “Only want the best working on it though, you know if Lindsay’s free?”

Michael raised an eyebrow at him. Lindsay was good at what she did, very good and he was slightly pleased that Gavin had managed to notice his girlfriend’s talent for machines.

“I think so, but you’d have to check with B-Team,” he shrugged letting himself fall back against Gavin’s shoulder. Gavin let him, allowing his arm to fall lightly around the older’s waist.

He enjoyed this time with Michael, both he and Ray had been a lot more affectionate since they’d come back from their stake out missions. Gavin still didn’t know the reason for their contracts, it was like and written rule that you didn’t ask unless they chose to tell you.

But Gavin lapped up the attention, he’d become accustom to the guy’s scents, the difference in them between being freshly showered, or gym tired, or after a job where they smelt like gun powered and smoke. 

That’s what Gavin could smell now, as it wafted up from Michael’s hair each time he shifted against Gavin’s shoulder. Michael sighed, pushing himself up off Gavin’s shoulder to scrub beneath his glasses and stretch.

Gavin let him, leaning forward to start gathering up his work and place in to the large folder he nicked from Geoff’s desk in his office.

“Anyway the really reason I came to bug you is that everyones pooped so were going to grab some food and then head home, you with?” Michael asked, stretching his arms out over the backs of the chairs either side of him.

“Sure is it everyone or?..” Gavin asked, pushing the folder in to his bag as he stood.

“No, Geoff and Jack are staying here to sort out some city stuff,” Michael told him, Gavin nodded pulling the lad from his chair before he could get too comfy again and steering him out of the planning room he’d claimed.

“Would you guys hurry the fuck up! Some of us are starving!” came Ray’s voice from below them as he spotted the pair on the landing a couple floors up.

“Suck a dick Ray!” Michael yelled over the barrier.

“Language Michael!” Ryan yelled as Gavin steered them in to an elevator, a large grin on his face.

“You know what Ryan, you can suck a dick, more importantly my dick as soon as we get home,” Michael yelled across the reception. Although Gavin knew the receptionists were used to hearing this kind of thing, he never got tired of seeing their eye rolls and slightly blushed cheeks, even more so when Michael went up on tiptoe to kiss the taller man roughly. 

Caught slightly off guard, it only took Ryan a couple seconds before he was kissing back. Ray rolling his eyes before attempting to get between them and shoving them apart.

“Can you guys wait till we get home please,” he begged shoving the two through the front doors and toward the waiting car, “come on Vav!” Gavin rushed after them catching Ryan’s comment of later as he climbed in to the passenger seat with Michael beside him. Ray shook his head holding the back door open as Gavin climbed in before getting in himself.

\-----

That was the first night that Gavin realised just how loud and obnoxious both Michael and Ryan could be when they were left alone together.

He’d tried everything, music, trying to work, ear plugs, burying his head under the four pillows and duvet of his bed, but all to no avail as the groaning and curses of the two men echoed through the walls of his apartment.

In the end he left, grabbing a six crate of energy drinks and jumbo bag of chips as he fled to the elevator in home that sound would be a little less noticeable in Ray’s room. If that turned to shit he was honestly thinking about getting in to Geoff and Jack’s apartment and slumming it on their couch since they wouldn't be home tonight (Geoff had made the call while they'd still be out to dinner).

As soon as Gavin stepped out the elevator on the floor that Michael and Ray shared, it became apparent that he could probably chill up here with the younger lad. The moaning was still loud by anyone’s means but thanks to the thick partitions between floors it was more muted.

He knocked on Ray’s door, listening as the video created gunfire paused and feet padded across the flooring.

When Ray opened the door he was pleasantly surprised to see Gavin stood there, pyjama bottoms low on his hips with a large t-shirt hanging off his shoulders; energy drinks and chips in hand.

“Michael and Ryan making you want to tear out your ear drums?” he guessed, stepping to the side so Gavin could get in.

“You got it in one,” Gavin laughed following Ray as he walked back toward the living room and settled back on the couch with his Xbox controller, unpausing the game as he continued to fire at the enemy, “Are they always that loud?” Gavin asked after a few seconds, leaning forward to grab one of the energy drinks from the table.

“Oh yeah, especially when they’ve not been together for while… it mostly Michael, he’s very vocal,” Ray laughed, his eyes glued to the screen as he captured the base of the other team.

They stayed like that for several minutes, exchanging small talk while Ray played and Gavin watched. Eventually Ray died, huffing a sigh as he held out the player two controller to Gavin. He grinned, taking it and waiting to be added in to the multi-team match with Ray.

Although Gavin had become a lot more used to the crew in the past days, the concept of their relationships still confused him slightly.  
From what he could tell there were the obvious couples and Ryan who did whatever or whoever. Since Ray and Michael’s return a few days ago they’d been extremely couplely but they’d backed off after a while and settled in to their usual, ‘ **I’m in a romantic and sexual relationship with my best friend and we don’t have to flaunt it **’.****

But there were still obvious points where the crew missed each other. For example: with Jack and Geoff staying late most nights the guys were usually a lot more loving toward them. It wasn’t uncommon for Gavin to spot them bidding farewell individually before leaving.

The disturbance in the city had also left Ryan on the run around, as he coordinated teams on mercenaries and other gunners to make sure Geoff’s main locations of ordnance, drugs, vehicles or money were protected 24/7. It meant he’d been out of the base a lot and pretty much none of the guys had seen him, which probably explained why Michael and he were fucking and forcing Gavin from his apartment.

“Does it not bother you?” Gavin asked finally, after a couple matches where he’d spent more time respawning than actually playing.

“Does what bother me?” Ray asked, pulling a handful of chips from the quickly depleting bag.

“Michael and Ryan?”

Ray thought for a minute, waiting for the game to load as he munched on the chips.

“It did at first I guess, but I mean I showed up after Lindsay and Michael were a firm thing and they were cool with me joining their relationship rather than everyone break-up and just have casual fucks when it was obvious that we all really fucking liked each other,” he picked up his controller again as the screen cleared, showing off the Valhalla map. 

“Obviously it still took a bit of getting used to when Michael expressed his interest in Ryan but, I love Michael and I know he still loves me… Just like Geoff and Jack love each other but also love us and the other back at base, we make it work.”

Gavin thought about Ray’s words as he was sniped again and waited to respawn. He was still trying to wrap his head around being able to love more than one person at once but he guessed it was just like next level friendship.

He knew he was growing to love them all as friends and his crew but he couldn’t deny the facts when he thought about how much he was falling for Michael.

There was also the fact of his memories finally coming back about what happened with Ryan at the beach and he’d be lying if he tried to deny not wanting it again. Ryan was attractive, a nice guy, and knew what the hell he was doing when he had a dick in his hand.

Gavin ended up staying at Ray’s that night, although Ray didn’t seem to get tired until 4am when he finally stretched and declared defeat.

Gavin had set about clearing off the couch so he could sleep there but Ray soon grabbed his arm and yanked him to bed.

“You don’t need to sleep on the couch idiot,” he laughed as he pulled on a pair of baggy shorts and a wife beater, “it’s just like a sleepover.”

Gavin smiled at that as he climbed in to bed beside Ray. The feel of the other man behind him reminded Gavin of the sleepovers he used to have as a kid back in England and when he felt Ray shift behind him, scooting backwards so their backs pressed together and legs entangled slightly, he couldn't help but lean in to the touch.

He fell asleep quickly after that, his breathing matching that of Ray's as he curled in to the warmth beneath the duvet.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So many apologise for the huge gap between postings, I recently moved in to uni so the past however many weeks have been spent sorting that... Also the course starts in a week so I can't promise regular uploads, but rest assured that I'm still trying to work on this in any spare time I can find.
> 
> Thanks to everyone thats read it so far and left comments and kudos, I love you all.

The next morning was calm. Ray having not being able to sleep for long, woke Gavin with a gentle shake at six to ask if he was at the base today.

A mumbled 'later' urged him to leave the other lad as he snuggled deeper beneath Ray’s duvet. With a small grin he said bye to Gavin and made himself some breakfast.

Usually Ray went to see Michael for breakfast, but knowing that Michael would have slept in Ryan’s bed at some point he simply left his front door open; listening out for the elevator as it dinged open on their floor.

“Morning babe,” Ray called from his kitchen as Michael padded past his room.

Michael grumbled slightly, stepping in to Ray’s apartment and wrapping his arms around Ray’s waist, leaning his head on the younger’s shoulder; planting a soft kiss on his cheek, “Morning, sleep well?”

“As good as I can,” he shrugged swallowing his last spoonful of cereal and spinning around on the bar stool so he was facing Michael, “how about you? Get any sleep?” Ray grinned, his hands resting lightly on Michael’s shoulders as he scanned over the damage that Ryan had caused.

A lot less than usual, just a few love bites scattered at the base of his neck, peeking from beneath Michael’s shirt, but Ray couldn’t see the further damages that ran across Michael’s stomach, hips and back.

“Eventually, Ryan’s a lot let cuddly than you though, I missed you,” Michael hummed, pulling Ray’s face slightly to meet his own in a lazy kiss.

Gavin stood quietly in the doorway of Ray’s bedroom watching the couple interact. The difference between them interacting with just each other and when they were with the rest of the crew or on a job interested Gavin. They were softer, not on guard as much, and obviously completely open with each other. 

Their kiss and interactions looked almost choreographed, years upon years of understanding and learning what the other liked, filtered down in to soft practised moves that came from the familiarity.

He felt a pang of sadness as he watched them pull apart leaning their foreheads together and just breathing in the other. Ray’s fingers drew small circles up and down Michael’s back and around his hips while Michael simple ran his thumb along the slight stubble on Ray’s cheek.

Ray spotted Gavin only when Michael leant back, the youngest of the three taken slightly off guard by Gavin’s curious watching.

“Oh hey Gav, thought you wasn’t getting up,” he babbled quickly, his hand tightening instinctively on Michael’s hips as he turned to look at Gavin, messy haired and slightly sleepy as he stood on the threshold of Ray’s bedroom.

“Oh yeah, um, I wasn’t gonna, but I er… I figured, Lindsey or someone might be able to um, to help me with some vehicles… so, so I’m just gonna go get dressed and I’ll meet you guys outside, okay? Yeah…” Gavin babbled, his gaze dropping to the floor as he gathered his shoes and scuttled toward the front door, practically running to the elevator once he was out of sight.

Confused Michael turned to look at Ray.

“Gav stayed here last night?” he asked.

“Well yeah, he couldn’t get any peace with you and Ryan next door so he came up, played some games and then stayed over… it was nice to have some down time with him,” Ray admitted, a small smile creeping across his face.

It had been nice to chill out with Gavin, almost normal and like they weren’t the most wanted and powerful people in Achievement City. It was like when Gavin had first joined up and everyone had settled down in Geoff and Jack’s apartment, everything had seemed normal and right then too.

Another thing that had felt right, too right for their still pretty new friendship, was how normal it felt to have Gavin in his bed. The weight, the heat, the scent of the other man beside him had be a massive comfort for Ray. But Ray had pushed the idea to the back of his mind, Gavin was still trying to deal with being part of this crew and this slightly out of the ordinary group, he didn’t need people coming on to him this close to his initiation.

“So you just let him stay in your bed?” Michael asked trying to keep his voice steady; his hand’s dropping from where they’d been resting on Ray’s shoulders so they barely gazed his knees as he took a step backward.

“Well I wasn’t about to force him to sleep on the couch, being forced from his apartment was bad enough,” Ray defended, realising Michael’s emotional shift.

“That’s a $9,000 couch Ray, it’s not exactly uncomfortable,” Michael worked to reign in his anger, especially around Ray, but it was difficult to be jealous and not even realise why.

“Well I’m sorry if I wanted to sleep next to someone last night while you was being fucked,” Ray shot back. The blow caught Michael off guard and unable to come up with some form of comeback he left the apartment to get ready for that day.

\-----

The rest of the day Gavin had locked himself away in one of the offices again as he ran through the multitude of contacts and made countless calls to try and get three fire trucks.

In the end the soonest he’d managed to find was still a two day wait, but that did give him time to get around the B-Team to find Lindsay and see if Jack would be free enough to help out.

He’d still not spoken to Ray about what he’d overheard. True he’d pelted it out of Ray’s apartment as quick as he could but that hadn’t stopped him from waiting in the hall way once he heard Michael’s voice shift. He’d only jumped in to the elevator once he heard Michael raving about the couch so he hadn’t caught Ray’s comeback, but if their current attitudes toward each other were anything to go by it hadn’t been pretty.

The pair had gone as far as to take separate vehicles to the main base, Ray saying something about having to check a drug shipment before the docks got too busy.

Ryan being the oldest of the remaining few hadn’t questioned it, wanting to get back to the base so he could at least attempt to get Geoff and Jack to take a nap or at least a break of some sort.

As usual they’d all split once they’d got to the base, but Gavin had still caught Michael’s glare as they got in to separate elevators.

As he sat in his empty office Gavin couldn’t help but ponder the predicament he’d found himself in. With Michael evidently mad at both Ray and Gavin he had no idea what to do. He could understand why Michael be jealous, he’d slept in the same bed as Michael’s boyfriend, but there again he’d also been off fucking another dude at the time. It wasn’t exactly a sin for Ray to want some company.

The thought led him to think about how he felt toward everyone. He cared about them obviously, they were his team, his friends, and planning a job for them had made it apparent just how much he didn’t want any of them to get hurt, despite the whole immortal thing being downed for even a few seconds could make everything a lot more difficult.

Maybe there were points though where Gavin could feel himself falling for members of the group. Obviously he still had that whole with Ryan to try and confront but he hadn’t been able to get the Gent alone, or spare enough time to even think about how he felt about the incident.

Then there was the whole thing with how safe Michael made Gavin feel, how right everything felt when they joked and hugged and just lounged on each other. He thought back to how Michael had taken care of him that first day when he’d found him passed out in his surveillance office, he hadn’t really been up there since. Ray hadn’t got jealous about any of that, or maybe he had and Gavin just hadn’t noticed, but Ray still seemed to want to spend time with him.

Gavin would be lying if he said he hadn’t enjoyed hanging out with Ray last night, and it had took almost every once his being to not turn around and cuddle the younger as they slept. 

Then Gavin’s mind slipped to his two leaders, Geoff and Jack, who had been working none stop since the appearance of this other crew had started giving them trouble. Gavin was worried about them, they’d barely slept and seemed constantly run down whenever Gavin managed to catch even a glimpse of them in the corridors.

And yet even though they we’re tired and half dead, they both made a conscious effort to make sure everyone else in the crew and business was okay. No doubt they’d hear about what happened between Michael and Ray and insist they were well enough to help work them through it.

Pushing his hands through his hair Gavin let out a groan of frustration. He rubbed his eyes until he saw flashing lights behind his eyelids before looking back at the sprawled papers in front of him, blinking until they weren’t just white blurs.

The plan was coming together, he just needed the trucks and they’d be set to go. At this rate he’d be finished way before his deadline and he just hoped that everyone would be ready for when it happened.

Pushing himself from the table he went in search of the B-Team so he could talk to Lindsay. He found her in one of the B-Team offices, with Michael.

The pair were against the desk. Lindsay sat perched on the edge with her legs either side of Michael’s hips, he skirt hitched up around her hips while Michael grabbed at her thighs, kissing her deeply.

Gavin heard Lindsay’s muffled moan as Michael shifted his attention to her neck, her fingers clawing at the soft skin of his lower back causing a slight growl to inch from Michael’s throat as his hands slid further up Lindsay’s thighs, catching at the waist of her leggings and working his fingers just below the side edge.

Gavin quickly backed away, his cheeks burning as he heard the slight scuffle of things being pushed off a desk. He rounded the corner thankful for the maze of offices between here and the main B-Team hub.

His breath was just returning to normal when he heard someone call his name from the end of the hall. It was Geoff.

The man looked tired, his face drawn with dark bags lining the underneath of his eyes. His attire was different, with Gavin used to seeing him in a well-made suit and dress shoes, it was a slight shock to see him in a dishevelled t-shirt and baggy jeans.

“You okay Gav?” he asked again, waving a hand in front of Gavin’s face.

Gavin nodded, swallowing a couple times as he tried to push the image of Lindsay and Michael in to the back of his mind.

“Yeah fine, was actually about to come and find you and Jack need to see if you could help me with something,” he proposed quickly. It wasn’t exactly a lie, Jack would have been his next port-of-call after Lindsay but she was a little busy right now.

“Ahh right, well come on then, Ryan’s making me and Jackie take a break so we’re going to go for coffee, you’re welcome to come,” Geoff smiled, it was weary but still genuine. Gavin nodded, prompting Geoff to throw his arm around the lad’s shoulder and steer him toward the B-Team and thankfully away from Michael and Lindsay.

\-----

“So let me get this right Gavin, you want me and Lindsay to fit three fire trucks with high powered water cannons,” Jack scoffed leaning forward in his seat toward Gavin who nodded.

“Exactly, the tanker goes in, Michael blows it which would immediately prompt fire services anyway. So the fire trucks thing makes sense, we need the water cannons to make sure no one gets in or out until Michael’s finished and he’s on the bike with you,” Gavin reeled off. He’d ran through this part of the plan numerous times that it was practically engrained in to his brain tissue.

“So whose gonna be covering you guys? I don’t about you but windshields can’t exactly take a lot bullets, and bulletproof glass will take way too long to get here and fit,” Jack asked. He was tired, he was cranky and honestly he just wanted to get to bed and cuddle up with his boyfriend. At least he kind of had one of those things with Geoff leaning heavily against him, his breath soft as he napped in the booth of the diner.

“Well there’s gonna be three of us in trucks spraying wildly, that should be enough to cover the store and us, we’ll just have to make sure we don’t hit each other too much,” Gavin said sipping his coffee and keeping his eye line on Jack, ignoring the sleepy noises that Geoff kept making.

“If you say so Gav, have you spoke to Lindsay about this yet?” Jack sighed, leaning back in his seat and causing Geoff’s head to slide on to his lap.

“I was going to but she was kinda busy when I went down,” Gavin felt his cheeks flare again, Jack catching the flush and raising an eyebrow in question.

“Busy?”

“Just her and Michael, in the office, I didn’t stay to check it out.”

Jack smirked, chuckling slightly as he let his hand fall on to Geoff’s shoulder; tracing light circles across the fabric of his t-shirt.

“So what happened between him and Ray this morning?” Jack asked knocking Gavin back a step. How did he know? Ryan might have told but all Ryan knew was that they went in separate cars this morning, and Ray had a pretty good excuse. Gavin attention was brought back to the diner when he heard Jack laugh again,  
“quit looking so deer in the headlights will you, when you’ve worked with a pair like that for as long as we have to start picking up on things. Like Michael doesn’t fuck anyone, particularly Lindsay, in the office unless he’s seriously pissed off,” Jack explained.

“So what happened?”

Gavin took a deep breath before explaining that he’d gone to Ray last night for a bit of company and to get away from the sound of Ryan and Michael. And how Michael had got a tad defensive when he found that Ray had let Gavin sleep in his bed.

Jack sighed. Michael wasn’t an overly jealous person, there were points though in the making of the group and this weird kind of relationship that had pushed him to his limits.

The worse one had been when Ryan first joined up and started expressing an interest in Ray. Of course Michael had got jealous and protective but he’d soon stopped when Ray pointed out that Michael still fucked Lindsay, Jack and Geoff on a regular basis, and he always turned a blind eye when he wasn’t included.

“Michael and Ray are close, they really do love each other, but Michael does have a habit of getting a bit too protective when someone starts taking an interest,” Jack explained.

“But I’m not taking an interest, Ray and I are just mates, nothing happened,” Gavin tried to defend, but even in his own ear the words sounded fake.  
‘ _Am I taking an interest?_ ’

Jack lowered his head slightly, running his hand over Geoff’s hair as he slept on his lap.

“If you say so Gav,” he mumbled before picking up the last of his coffee and downing it, “I’m going to take Geoff back home and probably get some sleep myself, tell Ryan he wins are you okay getting back to base on your own?” he asked.

Gavin nodded stiffly still staring at his fingers as they held on to the cup containing the last few sips of coffee. They were only a couple blocks away from the base, Gavin could walk back. He mumbled a quick by to the couple as they left, Jack practically carrying Geoff from the diner and in to their car.

‘ _Am I really that interested in Ray that Michael has a reason to be jealous?_ ’ Gavin thought letting his head fall in to his hands as he watched the car drive off.

\-----

Not much was done that day.

After Michael and Lindsay had finished in the office they split, Lindsay vanishing to the mechanics quarters while Michael still fraught with annoyance kept to himself in the gym. He didn’t even look up why Ryan popped his head in to say that Geoff and Jack had finally gone home to sleep.

The two bosses leaving meant that Ryan was instantly placed in charge, although Kdin and Caleb weren’t far behind in terms of authority. Ryan spent most of his day running through numbers about mercenaries and the newest order of weaponry that was meant to be coming in soon.

In the end though, Ryan gave up himself, everything just seemed off with half the team not talking to each other and the two leaders run to the bone. He settled himself inside the shooting range to test out a couple new weapons before grabbing a Mesa and heading out in to the hills for some proper hunting, his ‘friendly’ racoon mask enough to frighten any unsuspecting animal to death.

Ray on the other had took a lot longer than he’d needed to with the drug order, it had come in to the docks earlier that morning and was being sorted, sifted and thoroughly tested before he let it out to his dealers throughout the city. In honesty he probably spent longer than was safe at the docks, earning himself a few looks when he back to the car but knowing that Geoff paided off this end of the dock so they shouldn’t blab.

The rest of his day was spent in the city. He didn’t want to go back to the base, he’d just be hanging about enduring the tension between Michael and himself. No doubt Gavin would lock himself away to work on the plan that was still set as for nine days from now, despite Geoff and Jack running themselves in to the ground. Ray knew that he and Michael would have to sort everything by then, Gavin had enough on his plate planning this shit without having to worry that they’d start an argument in the middle of blowing a vault or something.

Ray was sat on top of one of the crappy motels that made up down town when he saw Lindsay talking with another woman outside of a slowly crumbling strip club. It wouldn’t have alerted Ray’s suspicions if he hadn’t known that Lindsay was meant to be bogged down at the office all day.  
On top of that the pair were making it blatantly obvious that whatever they were discussing wasn’t common; shutting up every time a drunkard or no good pick-pocketer passed them by.

Lindsay was dressed in a usual black hoodie, her red hair hanging around her shoulders and a pair of black aviators covering her eyes. Ray moved on the roof, keeping low so he could try to get a better view but the other woman had her back to the building that Ray was on. From what he could tell she was coloured, her dark coffee skin complemented by the tan trench coat what synched in her waist. Her dark hair was dyed a light purple at the tips, and fell from beneath the large hat she wore in curls around her shoulders.

Ray stained his ears, moving closer still but frightfully aware that he was almost over the edge of the building by this point and someone would probably see him, but he was too late as he watched the pair hug and head off in different directions. Lindsay heading toward the building that Ray was on while the other woman headed inside the strip club, disappearing in to the darkened doorway.

Ray sat back, letting his legs sprawl in front of him as he leant back against the doorway that led on to the roof.

' _Lindsay never speaks to clients?_ ' He thought frowning. That was usually Kdin’s job. Sometimes the intel girls, Ashley and Meg, would go out but not without Ryan as an escort. So what the hell was Lindsay doing in this part of town on her own?

Ray shook his head, he was thinking too much in to it, she was probably just a friend of Lindsay’s that happened to be in town. Maybe she was out here collecting something for mechanics. He scrubbed a hand through his hair, pulling his phone form his pocket an instinctively opening up Michael’s contact. He wanted to talk to him and apologise, what he’d said that morning was out of order. But Ray also wanted Michael to apologise, they’d both said things they didn’t really mean and Michael didn’t really have any reason to act all jealous boyfriend again.

He pressed the home button, lurking through his twitter instead and couldn’t help but smile at the various mentions of his twitter handle.

Geoff hated the guys having social media but it was fun to watch and flip through. Always filled with conspiracies and people claiming to have stories about the crew or intel on the members. In fairness some of them got pretty close about the group dynamics, and some of the ‘fans’ posted awesome pictures from heists that they’d been in the right place/right time to capture.

It was always amusing to use twitter as an outlet, sometimes it’d just be pictures of the heist table, scraps of paper or various weapons littering its surface with the caption ‘ **Lets cause some havoc** ’ and it would instantly send the feed in to a frenzy. Other time it’d just be pretty horizon shots from choppers or when they were camping out the tops of buildings or messing about on the mountains.

Ray looked up from his phone, flicking up the camera and lining the shot so he could see the sky line, smoggy and smudged in the distance as taller and taller skyscrapers filled the city, backed by the curved points of hills and mountains and sparse forest. He snapped a couple, picking the least shaking and editing it quickly before posting it, ‘ **Nice to take some time out :)** ’ he typed placing the phone back his pocket as it whistled signalling that the tweet had sent.

Now he definitely had to move, the followers were quick and if they knew the area they could easily pinpoint his location within minutes; brushing off his pants he made his way toward the fire escape, walking the couple blocks toward his car with his hood up as his phone buzzed relentlessly in his pocket.

He should probably get back to base, and at least attempt to talk to Michael. The lad was probably working his way through a never-ending round at the gym, that was if he hadn’t already banged Lindsay like he usually did when he was angry.

He sped out of downtown as his phone pinged again, it was Ryan.

‘ **Hey, fancy getting your butt back here? Michael’s refusing to talk anyone and won’t leave the gym. Seriously your boyfriend is going to pass out from dehydration soon.**  
**Ryan xx** ’.

Oh great just what Ray needed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> P.S. Sorry this is so short, theres more coming I swear (uni wifi sucks dick)


	12. Chapter 12

As it turned out Michael still wasn’t looking to talk to anyone about anything and by the time every got home that evening it didn’t look promising.

Gavin had kept himself locked in the surveillance area after getting back from lunch with Geoff and Jack; his eyes darting between the screens and his scrawled writing as he watched the various travellers and everyday people enter and leave the gas station.  
As much as he didn’t want to talk to anyone he couldn’t help but watch them, switching to the in base surveillance every so often to watch the others. Ryan was still busy trying to organise the work he’d neglected earlier in the day while Michael paced between the gym and shooting area, Ray had tried to talk to him and Gavin had watched as Michael just blew past him; heading back toward the gym for another round.

The action irritated Gavin. Michael had no reason to be angry or ignoring Ray, fuck they were boyfriends and had been for a fucking long time, ‘surely they dealt with this stuff before?’ Gavin could help but think to himself as he watched Ray give up and head down to B-Team’s area to discuss another shipment with Tina.

That evening was spent in a split silence, usually the couple spent time together or they’d head to Geoff and Jack’s and chill out there. But tonight everyone went out on their own, separating from the car before Ryan had even turned it off and locked the garage doors again.

Gavin still refused to think about his situation and possible outcomes between him and Ray and in the end he headed out again in the late evening, wandering aimlessly through the Achievement City streets.

He found himself stopping at a small convenience store, the multitude of bottles staring at him through the murky glass, but he turned his back on them, continuing down the street and staying out of the dark alleys. More than once he was approached by the girls that hung on street corners, each one flirtatious and touchy as they clutched the arm of his shirt and ran nails enticingly down the side of his neck but he turned them all down along with the dealers that came up to him.

The dealers were the ones that made him think more, hookers were all pretty much the same when you weren’t watching them on a camera feed, but dealers were all different depending on what they were selling.

You had your average weed dealer, laid-back and usually pretty young. They’d been the kind of crowd that Gav had ran with back in the dark days and were usually the people that Ray employed for his smaller shipments since they didn’t require much pay.

The better the drug the better the dealer you met. 

The top guys, the ones with coke and heroin, premium brands that no doubt ran beneath Geoff’s order. They were the guys that intimidated Gavin the most.

They were usually bigger guys; muscular and well dressed with dark shades despite the darkness. A small group of smaller guys usually worked beside them organising and actually carrying the goods, they were lackeys of the business so the big guy never go the blame or time.

Sometimes the smaller guys were kept guarded and under watch by another big guy or two, they didn’t care for the people they just cared for the product. When it came to their various selling styles however Gavin was still amazed:  
You had the pushy type, ones that would follow you several blocks before giving up and bugging someone else.  
Those that had obviously taken more than their fair share of their supply, off their tits and wide eyed or so slow they lost their train of thought half through a sentence.  
You had the pimps, usually pretty nice guys that could offer you good rates but with doped up hookers hanging off each shoulder; tempting you with a good time and taster of what their ‘daddy’ had to offer.  
And then the final ones were completely respectful, they’d stop you and start with civil conversation before popping the question, and then if you said no they’d be kind and wish you a good evening.

The last were Gavin’s favourite to run in to. They reminded him of the old days because he’d employed the same tactics and usually ended up with a buyer every time.

Gavin had been known as the charmer back in his drug days. He’d been the front man, the pretty face that could get anyone to buy anything and convince them it was the best ting in the world. Now he was just the tech and surveillance guy, kept on the side lines and behind the scenes unless he was called forth cause they were short on the front line.

In part Gavin did miss it. He enjoyed the adrenaline, the constant fear of death as bullets flew past ears and ricocheted off walls, chipping at cement and wood. But at the same time he loved surveillance, he was the guy that every team needed. He enjoyed the power he could gain from just wielding knowledge and with a good set of gunners at his back no one could fuck with him. He could draw attention to someone or make them disappear at the drop of a hat, and that held power within itself. 

By the time Gavin reached the cliffs he was a lot happier and clear headed, perching himself on the edge and watching the water churn slowly beneath him. It was there that he decided, ‘why not test out this new apparent immortality, without the company of the others?’ and standing retraced his steps four blocks back inland, stopping at a small close store to buy some mirrored aviators; heading toward down town and the ammunitions shop he knew Geoff owned.

Now of course anyone can walk in to a shop and buy a gun with the correct licenses and cash, but licenses cost money and attract government attention who can trace any register gun straight back to it holder. Geoff Ramsey knew this and that why when he was growing his empire he knew that he needed a way for his people to get guns with no problem, so he set up a small code that only those that needed it knew.

“The Captain is grateful for you’re continued cooperation to Wall Street,” Gavin reeled off, placing the mirrored aviators atop his nose and smirking at the cashier.

“The Captain and his crew are welcome to all they wish,” the cashier quoted back, sitting back in his seat from which he’d stood. Gavin nodded and began to browse pointing out a Shrewsbury Sawed Off Shotgun with a hint of glee.

“That and lets say…” Gavin thought for a moment, turning to check out the other wall of guns, “the MG with extended clip, gold tint on both,” Gavin smiled, his cheeks pressing at the rims of his glasses as the cashier nodded and left toward the back room to collect Gavin’s purchase.

Before long Gavin had hijacked a car from across the road of the ammunitions store and was speeding back toward the apartments, his shotgun and MG sat in a duffle bag on the seat next to him with their ammunition in the footwell. All the buildings and people Gavin had met and seen speed past in blurs of colour and shouts and he weaved easily through the sparse traffic.

He stopped outside the convenience store he’d pasted earlier. The windows still murky and in need of a good clean but the warm interior had caused the glass to mist, making the few figures and shelving inside fuzzy as Gavin looked through it from the car.

He waited for the shop to clear of civilians, loading his shot gun and replacing his aviators on top of his head. Only once it was empty did he walk toward the store, the shot gun swinging loosely in his hand as he pushed the door open, pulling his glasses back over his eyes.

The clerk looked up at him from the small seat behind the counter,

“Good evening sir, little dark to be wearing sun gla..sses… isn’t… it…” the man’s voice faded out as Gavin grinned raising the gun and walked toward the counter.

“All the money you got one of those bag, and fuck throw your most expensive liquor in there as well,” Gavin ordered, his eyes trained on the tinted image before him.

This was something he’d really missed. Holding the gun steady he watched the man clumsily open the register and begin to grab handfuls of cash, stuffing it quickly in to a brown paper bag.

“Come on I don’t have all day!” he yelled a bit too loud, firing two shots in to the wall behind the man, being sure to hit the cheaper drinks than the ones that the clerk began reaching for, grabbing blindly and stuffing them in the bag.

“There, there, that’s all I have,” the clerk whined, pushing the bag to the edge of the counter. Gavin walked forward keeping the gun poised on the clerk as he peered in to the bag, the unmistakable smell and sound of urine hitting the floor filled his senses as the gun sat mere centimetres from the man’s head.

“Thank you for your cooperation,” Gavin spoke, his voice smooth and deadly as he rolled the top of the bag with one hand and pulled in next him with a swift turn. He wasn’t in any rush however and happily walked back toward the door like he’d just made an ordinary purchase, that was until a shot rang out and he was sent stumbling in to one of the shelves, pain radiating through his shoulder and the bullet ripped through-and-through.

Turning to see the clerk with a small pistol clutched between his sweaty palms Gavin grinned, revealing in the feeling of his own warm blood trickling down his arm and on to the gun that he now clutched tighter willing it not to slip as he turned and raised it again.

“Shouldn’t have done that,” he grinned before firing a single shot at the man’s head. Gavin’s stance didn’t falter as the man’s face disappeared and his brain’s splattered the remaining alcohol and cigarettes behind him.

In the distance Gavin could hear the whirr of police sirens, ‘Fucker must’ve pushed a panic button,’ Gavin thought to himself as he lowered his weapon and left the store, getting back in his car and throwing the money in the back seat.

Adrenaline still burned in his veins as he sped off down the street, circling around twisting through alleys in order to lose the cops before returning back to the apartments.

He was surprised to see the lights of the various rooms lit, and even more surprised when he wandered in to the reception to find Ryan waiting for him.

“Good evening?” he asked. Gavin frowned at him, Ryan had his skull mask on obviously ready to head out.

“Yeah actually, better than staying here,” he answered honestly, ignoring the dull aching throb in his shoulder as he pulled the bag containing his weapons further up.

“Glad to here it, Geoff wants you, everyone else is already up there,” Ryan gestured toward the elevator pushing himself up off the desk he’d been sat on.

Gavin didn’t argue, stepping in to the waiting elevator and moving toward the back wall as Ryan entered too. Pressing the button for Geoff and Jack’s floor.

What Gavin was expecting, certainly wasn’t what he got when he stepped over the threshold of Geoff’s apartment.  
Everyone was already sat in there, Jack passing worriedly over by the windows, spinning a phone in his hands while Ray and Michael sat at opposite ends of the sofa, their phones open and eyes glued to the laptop screens in front of them.

Gavin certainly hadn’t expected the bitch slap Geoff gave him when he walked through the door. His ears ringing as Geoff yelled something about him being a mountain of dumb and a fucking idiot for going out alone.

He tried not to look at the rest of guys as they turned and took in the event happening in front of them.

“Gavin!” Geoff yelled, grabbing his attention, “Why the fuck did you go out alone and get fucking shot!”

Gavin paused for a moment before shrugging grimacing slightly as the movement tugged at the fast healing bullet wound.

“Just bored I guess, sitting behind a computer all day doesn’t actually fill me with adrenaline I used to get working for a gang,” his voice was steely, although he hadn’t meant it to be, but the words he spoke were the truth. He was bored. Bored of planning, of waiting, of watching, of wishing he was somewhere else. He needed some action, some adrenaline and boy had he got it.

“Thats fine, but maybe fucking warn us next time before you decide to go out and get shot! You have any idea how much a through-and-through hurts when I’m not expecting it? A fucking lot I’ll tell you!” Geoff ranted, prodding at the bloody hole in Gavin’s shirt.

Gavin frowned, it made sense he guessed. Geoff pretty much tied himself to each person, he was responsible for their healing and immortality, it made sense that he’d be able to feel everything.

The thing was, most bullet wounds or slashes or punches were expected and Geoff could prepare himself and ignore the various pains. But when he wasn’t expecting it, everything hurt just as much as it would if it was himself on the receiving end.

Most of the guys had learnt that by now and so (with the exception of Ryan) didn’t go out on their own or without telling Geoff. This was Gavin’s first time, and he was just starting to realise that his actions could have consequences.

Not knowing how to make it up to the boss, Gavin bent down placing both his bags on the ground and reaching inside the paper one to pull out a large bottle of Macallan Whisky, offering it up to the boss.

Geoff took it curiously, looking it over before cocking and eyebrow and nodding for Gavin to stand.

“Just don’t go out without telling someone first alright,” Geoff’s voice was a lot kinder now, the anger subsided as he walked away and toward the kitchen.

“Sure thing, sorry Geoff,” Gavin said, picking up his bags and walking toward the middle of the couch that Michael and Ray were sat on, aware that Ryan was still following him curiously. He managed to catch the map and transmit point on Michael’s map before he put his head down to grab the other gifts he’d gained.

“Hey, Michael, Jack, you guys want these two, can’t drink it all to myself,” Gavin offered holding out another bottle of whisky (this time a bottle of bourbon) to Michael who took without much word. Jack walked over then, slapping Gavin around the back of head when he bent down to pull out another bottle.

“You’re a fucking idiot, but thank you,” he smiled, taking the bottle from Gavin and admiring the label.

It was then that Gavin removed his own two bottles and tossed the bag to Ray.

“You and Ryan can slit up that if you like, I know you don’t drink,” and without so much as a second thought he left, pulling the duffle bag back on to his good shoulder and headed back to his own apartment, whisky bottle's swinging happily in his hands, leaving the others in a slight disbelief.

“Maybe we should let him out on the front line more often,” Geoff decided walking out of the kitchen with a short glass of his new whisky.

“He’s gonna be front and centre for his fucking heist, he should be planning that not fucking around,” Michael huffed unscrewing the top of his own bottle and placing it to his lips.

“And lets not forget about this territory war, were gonna need every gunner we can get,” Jack muttered in Geoff’s ear, his look grave as Geoff turned to him, the light dimming behind his iris with a short nod.

“Alright you fuckers, get out my apartment,” Geoff called waving the arm not holding the whisky between the couch and the door as it erupted in to groans and huffs. The guys quickly left, Ryan and Ray still splitting cash between them as Michael practically barged through the door in front of them and left Geoff and Jack on their own.


	13. Chapter 13

Four days later and Gavin had managed to get his fire trucks; having both Lindsay and Jack on them as well as grabbing the majority of attention from everyone else in the mechanic’s department over the next three days.

The fire hoses were fixed on top of the trucks, their pressure increased enough that they could dramatically slow an advancing car and slam doors and bodies backward. How did they know this? Well Geoff had taken the guys out to one of their testing lots near the coast along with their newest set of mercenaries.

His thought was to kill two birds with one stone. Gavin got to test out his new toys and Geoff got to run the new guys through a gruelling initiation task setting them up at one of the lot with a simple instruction, capture the flag.  
The flag in question was a large black one, a green star emblem pressed to both sides and shifting in the wind.

The mercenaries had thought it an easy take stood out on the lot with just Geoff and Michael, that was until the great red trucks appeared over the small hill, their sirens blaring along with music that grew upon their approach. Driving them was Gavin, Ray, Ryan, so they could get a feel of the trucks since they’d be driving and manning the cannons as they quickly set their positions in front of the flag.

The mercenaries looked between Geoff and the now very intimidating trucks, the sirens had stop but music still blared as Geoff grinned at the group. Michael’s gun clicked as he locked in a fully loaded magazine, catching the attention of the newbies.

“Think you can still capture the flag?” Geoff asked them. He was an honest man and had told them previously that if any wanted to quit at this stage they were welcome to it, although they would be under a constant surveillance to make sure they didn’t blab and would never be able to apply for work within Geoff’s business ever again.

Unsurely the mercenaries nodded and began to scatter themselves throughout the rubble and methodically placed barriers.

“I hope they can all dodge,’ Michael laughed as he and Geoff walked in to their positions.

Initiation was one of Michael’s favourite days. He got to see other guys work, put them through hell and had the opportunity to practise his own shooting since Geoff gave permission for him to shoot and injure.

The mercenaries were told the same, given a regular pistol with sixteen rounds, they were allowed to shoot the other runners. There was no such thing as team in their business and having a ‘every-man-for-himself’ style competition allowed Geoff to weed out the ones that couldn’t or wouldn’t be able to run with the speed of his company. He’d still give them work though, pawn them off to a couple of his smaller jobs and clients… if they lived that was.

With a wave of his head everything seemed to still. Gavin had paused his music once they’d taken position but watching for Geoff’s signal he sat with his thumb hovering over the play button on his iPod, ‘Bleed American’ waiting to be blasted and boy did it.

No sooner had Geoff waved his hand and let the shout of ‘ **GO! **’ leave his lips, the lot erupted in to battle cries and gun shots.****

The few that had ran straight forward first were met with blasts of freezing water, rocking them to the ground in an instant and not letting up until they went after someone else. The water quickly turned the whole lot in to a muddy, gravel filled mess that covered the mercenaries clothing and body armour.

Shots fired and skipped off the barricades and bulletproof vests while others hit their marks, embedding in the flesh of thighs, arms, and shoulders and sending yells of pain in to the skys but still they continued.

Some of the mercenaries had managed to make good ground. But the closer they got, the further the water cannons shot them back. Michael and Geoff didn’t make it easy for them either, between whoops and laughs they let bullets fly past ears and heads, skimming knuckles and wrecking havoc in the men’s fight for the flag.

From the cabs of the trucks, malicious laughter could be heard beneath the music, think deadly chuckles matched with excited squawks and comical laughing filled the shot space between music and gun fire.

By the time someone finally reached the flag the entire team of mercenaries were drenched to the skin and shivering. Many had emptied their guns in the battle and many other sustained wounds that bled steadily, staining their already dark clothing completely black and creating red smears on pale skin.

Geoff had called a halt on everything once the flag had been raised; commanding all the remaining mercs to stand where they had finished. Most had made it half way or just past and few had managed to make it with in two or three barricades of the truck’s fire power, however there were a few stragglers that hadn’t even made it past the second barricade in their course of twenty-five.

Congratulating the winner of the game and those that had gotten close, Geoff called forward group and placed them in a line with his back to them. From there he walked along, tapping those that he thought best suited for the jobs he was offering and in the end there was only three left standing in the original line. Handing the winner and two closest competators guns he order their second initiation to begin.

“I want no survivors,” he whispered to the three and gesturing to the ones that hadn’t made the cut.

They looked at him, wide eyed and slightly scared as he nodded to them and walked back toward the main crew who had gotten out of their trucks to congratulate those that had been given access to the business.

But now everyone stood silent as the three stepped forward, each lining themselves behind one of the losers. With a small nod to each other the three raised their guns and Geoff couldn’t help but take in the unsteadiness of one of them as he stared at the back of his loser’s head.

The mercenary in question couldn’t help but shake, he was cold and battered but he’d never expected to be holding a gun to his best friend’s head. They’d worked together for years, they’d been street kids together, starting as petty thieves and working their up the ranks in various gangs. They’d been like brothers, completely inseparable, him the runner and fighter while his friend had been the brains of and eyes of every operation.

Geoff watched as the man hesitated while the other clicked off their safeties, at this point the three losers knew their fate and hung their heads in final prayers as they felt the ghosts of pistol barrels at the back of them.

As the first two shots rang clear, the third man collapsed with a cry,

“I can’t! I can’t do it!” he balled, curling in on himself as tears covered his cheeks, matching that of his friend’s as he turned around to kneel beside him the pair clinging to each other.

“Ryan,” Geoff ordered quietly, his voice just low enough for those closest to hear.

Without a second a thought Ryan walked toward the pair, drawing his gun from his holster and clicking the safety off. In seconds in was over and the two were lay in a growing pool of their blood beside the others.

“There is no option for weakness in this group, anyone can turn on you at any moment and sometimes you have to be ready to shoot a team mate between the eyes. Sometimes it as protection other times its to prevent their own pain,” Geoff spoke with authority in front of the group as they tried to not look at the bodies littering the floor or meet the dead eyes of the grey skull mask as Ryan stood beside Geoff, his gun still in hand.

With a clap Geoff raised his mood, almost flipping completely back in to the slightly nuts boss the crew knew.

“Now with that over, final test, clean this lot up and get back to base for prep and cleaning. Don’t get seen.”

Now the mercenaries really did stare at him as a wide grin spread beneath his slightly crooked moustache, turning and placing a light hand on Ryan’s arm as the main crew got back in to the fire trucks and drove them back to base.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's so short but I just needed to get this section down after thinking about what other members of Ramsey's empire might have to do for initiation.
> 
> Also Question!: Who do you think the mystery woman is from last chapter?


	14. Chapter 14

With just five days left before Geoff's deadline, Gavin went in to full shut down mode, he ran over every possible outcome of the coming heist and everything that could go wrong and even managed to get Geoff out of the office long enough to have him look over it and give him a couple pointers.

Gavin had scheduled his heist to take place two days before his deadline, it was the days before the tills and vault of the gas station would be emptied so they’d an ultimate pay out, and so on the day before the heist was set he got everyone together in the main AH offices in the main base.

He had his plans set up as everyone filtered in, and he even had Kdin, Celeb and Lindsay standing in since they usually played their own part as eyes and ears for every operation.  
With a deep breath and a small nod from Geoff, Gavin flung himself headfirst to his team mates.

“So guys, heist you ready?” he stalled trying to gain his feet in front of a still slight disgruntled audience.

“No I think I have to take a shit first, of course we’re fucking ready you moron,” Michael snapped, lounging in his chair with his arms crossed. Geoff turned on him, shooting the younger down quickly and encouraging Gavin to continue.

“Okay, so you may be wondering like, why would I lead a heist? What skills do I have?” he gulped taking a deep breath and straightening his back as he felt him fall back in to the same state he’d been in when he’d robbed the convenience store, “Well I have confusion, and disorientation, and that’s what we’re going to be going for for this heist.”

He stepped back toward the board that held all of his plans. Jack leant forward in his seat while Michael and Ray stayed back, the pair still unconsciously copying each other despite their arguments. Geoff and Ryan were stood, their attention on Gavin and the plans behind him.

Blocking out the two lads Gavin drew his focus to the Gent speaking more to them as he reeled off the plan.

“Okay, so the place we’re hitting over here, it’s a small gas station, as you can see from these sweet selfies,” he gestured to the various pictures that he’d taken and already pinned to the board.

Ray cleared his throat, holding back a scoff, “Why would you take your own picture if your…”

“We really wanna make sure they know who robbed them,” Michael latched on, leaning forward as he laughed openly at Gavin’s mistake.

In fairness Gavin’s phone was broken, he couldn’t actually change the position of the camera, but he’d thought it too suspicious to just take pictures of the gas station, a selfie seemed like a better option. It was only know as most of the group held in small laughs that he realised his mistake.

“So we’re gonna make sure to burn that, and you after this is over right?” Ryan asked, pointing toward the board.

“Erm, right, yeah, so,” he babbled, mentally kicking himself. He was making a fool of himself, there was no way the crew could take him seriously after this big a screw up, “we’re hitting this place here. Now the confusion part, we don’t need codenames for this one so we’re just gonna put secret infront of everyone’s names, so Geoff, Ryan…”

“Secret Geoff,” interjected, he enjoyed codenames, and would take any opportunity to get his guys to use them.

“Yeah, Ray and Secret Gavin, we’re all gonna dress in yellow, we’re gonna be in the fire trucks,”

“Why are we wearing yellow?” Geoff asked confused.

“Cause we’re pretending to be fireman,” Gavin answered, although he’d thought the idea had been pretty much self-explanatory.

From there he went on to explain where they would hide the trucks while the rest of the heist was set up. A small ramp just big enough for the trucks and less that a block from the station would give them enough coverage they needed to hide everything.

“Okay so we have the three hidden trucks, meanwhile Michael you’re gonna be in charge of the petrol tanker I’ve already got sorted, here, we’re gonna absolutely litter it with sticky bombs, I want twenty-five sticky bombs on this… no thirty? Yeah thirtys right.”

He pointed out Geoff as the detonation guy and couldn’t help but catch Michael’s excited smirk when Gavin told him it was his job to drive the tanker in to position before going in to the store to job the place. Gavin also took his time to amend the small mistake he’d made placing Ray in the trucks, telling him that he’d be up on a roof facing the gas station giving them covering fire and it was while Michael was driving in to position he’d be getting ready up there.

“Where am I going to be during all this Gavin?” Jack asked, feeling slightly left out as he felt the excitement rolling off the people around him.

“Oh yeah, Jack you’re gonna be around there, in an alley, just behind the fence, this is just behind the gas station,” he clarified pointing to a small ‘J’ he’d written on the map amongst the other letters and scribbles, “you’ll be waiting on a bike,” he finalised noticing Jack’s slight apprehension…

‘ _A bike doesn’t have a lot of protection against bullets and cop cars,_ ’ Jack thought to himself, chewing on his lip slightly as Gavin continued.

From there Gavin began to list his plans one after the other, running through the list he’d written and organised a dozen plus times.  
‘Geoff detonates, Chaos, We’re waiting in the ramp, Michael gives us the go ahead, We blast in with sirens blazing, We start pretending to put out the fire.’

He’d fallen in to it now, the easy laidback person he was, the charmer able to get anyone and everyone round to his way of thinking and suddenly all the arguments and annoyances he had about a few of group vanished.

Now he was in control and boy was he gonna take it.

“Michael, you use the chaos you start the robbery, we extinguish flames, we extinguish police, no one gets in… or out, if there’s people in there that’s unlucky for them.” Taking a breath he pointed down at Michael who raised his brows as though Gavin was challenging him.

“Michael you leg it out on foot…”

“Nobody gets in out or, Michael you go out,” the lad laughed causing the others to start laughing as well. Gavin shook the comment off and powered through.

“You run out, you do a little U-turn you’ll end up jumping over this fence just here, where Jack will pick you up on the bike. We then meet up right here, on the jet skis, every but Ryan because of what I was informed of happened last time…” 

Ryan couldn’t help but grin and hold back his laugh at the last heist they’d tried to pull off and ended up being a failure with Ryan shooting Geoff and giving himself a Viking funeral.

After hearing that he’d be in charge of getting his own cargo bob on to the scene he was a little less happy, since the money for that came out of his own pocket, and after a slight worry that there were only four jet skis and a slight bickering over who would have to ride with who, Gavin managed to finish his plan.

“So Ryan you fly out over here, pick us all up and fly back to here, Maize Bank, bevs on the roof, split up the money and then probably set running again to this safe house, done,” Gavin held his arms out, letting them fall and looping his thumbs through the belt loops on his jeans.

He answered a couple questions from Kdin and Lindsay who would be helping out with eyes and ears and telling them when they were clear to return to the city, and stayed back to help finalise a couple things with Geoff and Ryan but other than that everyone seemed ready to hit the bank tomorrow evening.

\-------

That evening Gavin couldn’t help but notice the difference in everyone. Geoff had called in a tradition when they all settled in his flat that night. It was a lot like Gavin’s first night with the crew.

Video games bleared across the large television screen and drinks flowed freely between lips. It was almost as though they were getting ready to call this their final night together, and although they couldn’t die they still couldn’t get out of the habit, it was something that felt normal to them by this point.

By midnight, almost everyone was merry and when Ray stood to grab another Malta from the fridge Michael followed him.

He needed to apologise, he’d needed to since he’d walked out of the apartment but his stubbornness as held him back, now nothing could as he stood awkwardly leaning against the counter with Ray in front of him.

They spoke for a few minutes, Ray insisting that he really didn’t care and Michael insisting that him apologising was important and in the end it took Ray shutting him up with kiss.

“Look you’ve said sorry, that’s all I wanted. I know I shouldn’t get jealous over Ryan since he’s pretty much my boyfriend too, but I mean it when I say you don’t need to worry or be jealous over Gav, okay,” Ray spoke in a soft voice, his face still close to Michael’s as he held his face, his thumb rubbing slightly over the older’s cheek.

Michael nodded stiffly, his eyes shining slightly as he leant their foreheads together with a sigh.

“Please just no more jealousy, I love you,” Ray almost begged, scrunching his eyes before looking back at Michael through his lashes.

“And I love you,” Michael answered back, pulling Ray’s lips back to his own for a quick kiss before they released and went back to the living room to sit with everyone else.

Their change in attitude didn’t go unnoticed as they nestled next to each other on the floor. Ray earning a small thumbs up from Gavin who had found himself slowing cuddling against Ryan’s side, the heat of the older man drawing him in as the alcohol took affect and made him slightly sleepy.

In the end the night went well and everyone ended up staying in Geoff’s apartment since most of them seemed too tired to move, retreating to the various spare bedrooms. But it wasn’t until everyone was tucked away (Jack and Geoff in their room, Michael and Ray sharing a bed in another and Gavin and Ryan in separate rooms) that Gavin found himself craving the same affection that the couples had.

Finding himself outside if Ryan’s door had been in the plan, what hadn’t been was his first reaction to kiss him as soon as Ryan opened the door to reveal himself in half naked wondrousness. Gavin couldn’t stop himself, staring at the fine toned muscles of Ryan’s chest and arms before stepping forward and pulling Ryan’s lips to his own.

A little shocked Ryan had taken only moment to reciprocate the action, wrapping his arms around Gavin and shuffling backward until the door slide shut behind them.

They stayed like that just kissing and feeling one another for what felt like eternities and in the end they realised they were both already too worn out to do anything and just settled themselves beside each other with Gavin using Ryan’s chest as a pillow while Ryan cradled him softly.

They quickly fell in to quiet sleeps, their breath soft and even as the night drew on and the dawn advanced closer and closer.


	15. Chapter 15

“Hey Gavin? Gav come on dear you gotta wake up unfortunately.”

Warm breath brushed against Gavin’s ear from behind him as the person spoke, their weight leaning on the bed allowing Gavin to roll easily toward it, wrapping his arms around the slim waist as he nestled in to the heat of Ryan’s chest. He hummed happily, curling slightly against the older man as he wrapped his arms around Gavin’s shoulders.

Ryan chuckled, nosing through the top of Gavin’s messed up hair before kissing it gently.

“Come on Gav, we need to run a quick inventory and you need to make sure everything is set up,” he urged leaning back slightly from Gavin only to have the lad groan and rest heavier against his chest as they sat up.

“Do you mind making me a coffee or something love,” Gavin groaned releasing Ryan’s waist and sitting up next to him as he scrubbed his eyes against the slow throbbing in his temples.

“Pain killers as well I’m guessing, no problem,” Ryan smiled down at Gavin as he stood up and took a step away, but Gavin gripped his hand softly pulling him back and down so he could plant a small kiss on the older’s lips. Ryan smiled returning it before stepping away and swinging out of the door without another comment.

With Ryan gone Gavin stood taking a moment to survey the damage in Ryan’s mirror before scurrying quickly to the bathroom to wash and then back to his own room to get dressed, he only had a couple bruises on his collar bone and they’d be covered by his shirt anyway.

He could already here everyone else bustling about in the living area, socked footsteps padding across the laminate flooring as they relayed to Geoff what they needed for the heist while being sure to catch up on the gossip of the evening.

Questions were mainly directed to Ryan, as he went about making Gavin’s coffee and leaving it to cool in the kitchen beside two aspirin, but the man wasn’t having any of it. Every vulgar question was meet with either a glare or simple, ‘ **Please you would’ve heard something if I’d got him to do that,** ’ and after a couple minutes everyone dropped the subject, but that didn’t stop the curious glances and smirks when Gavin entered.

“Your coffees in the kitchen Gav,” Ryan smiled gesturing toward the kitchen before returning to study the map in front of him and the escape route he was planning to take. Most of the group was doing the same, either that or calling in various weapons and vehicles ready for that evening.

No sooner had Gavin swallowed his pills Geoff was on him, wanting to run over the plan and get everything finalised,

“Linds and Kdin need to know where they’ll be good to hover in the copters and what escape routes people are planning on taking,” he babbled holding a map in one hand and his phone in the other. Gavin shook his head a moment taking the map from Geoff as leading them toward the coffee table where he perched himself beside Michael on the floor. 

Studying the map for a couple seconds while he sipped his coffee Gavin’s brain slowly kicked in to gear. Various letters linked to suggested escape routes littered the streets heading out toward the harbour and the jet skis except for Ryan’s that headed out toward the possible spot his cargo bob would be dropped, he still needed this information.

“Okay well, Michael and Jack should pretty much stick to this route,” he began leaning forward and tracing the line with his finger, vaguely aware that Michael was watching him from the corner of his eye.

“Change of plan there Gav, theres major road works on Flynt Street, we’re gonna have to take the highway or take the long way round,” Jack yelled from the kitchen as he scrolled through the traffic updates coming in from the main base. Gavin huffed slightly, 

“Right in that case, you and Michael head straight for the safe house, Ry still get the cargo bob, me Geoff and Ray will still head for the ocean, easiest place for us to lose the cops.” Ryan nodded standing from where he was sat next to Geoff to call in his cargo bob and get it ready.

Geoff and Gavin agreed that they should probably keep Lindsay on the bike team since they’d be pretty much on their own, meanwhile they’d have Kdin and potentially Caleb in the skies to help out the truck team. Gavin was starting to debate sending someone with Ryan but Geoff quickly got the idea out of his head when he pointed out that their worse case scenario was to be out at sea with no pick up, but they could easily turn back toward another port once the police activity had cooled down.

With the eyes and ears sorted and getting ready back at the main base it was just left for Gavin to get his fuel tanker ready and fire trucks ready to be picked up from the main base. The crew then decided to run over the plan once more and double check their ordinance lots; thirty sticky bombs, too many guns and talk about grenades later everyone decided they were ready to head back to main base to get set up.

“Hey how about a family cruise around the heist spots before we go to the base?” Gavin suggested as they loaded in to the elevator.

“Sounds good, Michael you want to grab the Roosevelt?” Geoff asked, Michael grinned and nodded, staying in the elevator to go to the garage while the rest got out and waited by the front doors. Everyone seemed on edge, but the kind of edge that was filled with electric and excitement and slow curling adrenaline that continued as everyone clambered in to the large black car, leaving Ryan and Ray to cling on to the backdoors.

As they drove through the city Michael noticed something very common in his side mirror,

“Ryan will you put your fucking gun away!” he yelled out of the open window, Ryan smirked at him although it was blocked by the skull mask he’d already adorned.

“What?! It’s just like a laser pointer, except with intent to kill,” Ryan laughed, aiming it pedestrians you barely noticed as they sped past.

“Ryan put the gun away or I’m putting you on a murder break for this heist,” Geoff threatened. Ryan pouted his bottom lip behind the mask but flicked the safety back on and threw in to Gavin’s lap through the open backseat window. Gavin squawked resisting the urge to poke Ryan in the side, knowing he was slightly ticklish there, and instead reached out and thumped him in the hip probably injuring himself more than he did Ryan.

They surveyed the gas station quickly, actually stopping to refuel the car and grab a few snacks so it didn’t look to suspicious before driving around to where Jack would be parked and taking their route slightly out of the city toward the safe house. Turning back in to the city once they got the call that all their vehicles were ready for pick up or planting from the mechanic’s HQ.

Gavin managed to talk one of their oldest mercs to deliver the fuel truck to an abandoned construction site just a few blocks past the gas station, allowing Michael and Ray to go after him once they’d got all their weapons and needs sorted out.

It was getting close now just three more hours and they’d be ready to blow the gas station and get the party started that would hopefully end with them having a fair amount to split up.

As they got ready Gavin locked all of the AH computers in to the gas station surveillance glancing at them between every magazine he filled and locked in to place. He was watching the clerk reorganise shelves when Ryan tapped him on his shoulder, he was holding a Sub-Urban paper bag in one had and a card board box (no bigger than a shoe box but more square) in the other.

“Happy heist,” he grinned holding the packages out to Gavin.

Taking the bag, he glanced inside slightly blinded by the florescent yellow clothing as it reflected of the lighting and white paper. The inside of the box was slightly easier to look at a black carbon warrior mask stared back at him from above sheets of white tissue paper.

Ryan leant back against the computer desks as Gavin pulled the clothing from its bag, cringing at the brightness of it in the light.

“Meg said that you should have seen the woman’s face when she tried to by three lots of yellow clothing,” he joked, “the masks I picked up yesterday before we all met back at home.” Gavin couldn’t help but smile up at him as he put the clothes back in their bag and took out the mask, twisting it in his hands before putting it on and turning his back to Ryan.

“Fancy tightening the clasp for me?” he asked, his voice muffled by the plastic. Ryan did so quickly, tugging at the straps until they were comfortably snug on Gavin’s head and allowed him to tilt it this way and that with little resistance or mask movement.

Ryan chuckled at Gavin when he turned back around, bright hazel eyes gazed up at him from beneath the harsh carved brow of the mask contrasting on a level that made it look almost alien. With a small thank you, the pair split off to get ready in to their hideous outfits and after being given his mask Jack went to check on Michael and Ray, getting a feel for the getaway bike as he did.

Before long everyone was suited up and ready, taking a few minutes to get the laughs out of their system as they took in the horrific choice of clothing. Meg had been pretty genius with her decisions, going as far as to even include hats and shoes for the group and each outfit seemed to get more and more ridiculous as they looked around the trio.  
Gavin was dressed in bright yellow tracksuit, Ryan had a rasta hat and flip-flops, and Geoff was forced to reveal his shockingly pale legs with a pair of florescent booty shorts which he grumbled about giving him a wedgie every time he moved.

It was fair to say that anyone who saw them on their walk down to the garages was holding in laughs as well, although several sniggers slipped through fingers as they passed. They only people that really didn’t hold back were Burnie and Gus as well as the guys from B-Team who were their eyes and ears for the evening, each one of them earning an enthusiastic middle finger from Geoff as he clambered in to truck in front of Gavin and Ryan.

Gavin was all too happy to be in the middle of the two gents, his excited squeaks echoing through the headsets they’d each been given,

“Oh look at us guys, we look so cool,” he giggled, bouncing in his cab as they worked their way toward the construction site.

“Yeah ' **cool** ',” Geoff grumbled attempting to remove the shorts from his ballsack for what felt like the hundredth time.

Upon entering the construction site, they found the other three just sat around talking, but that quickly turned to laughs as the fire truck team climbed out of their cabs. Michael wheezing a pointing toward Geoff’s bare legs while Ryan attempted to hand him the mask box he’d picked out. Jack on the other held back his laughs, opting to chew his bottom lip as he walked around Geoff in a circle.

“You know I think I like this look on you,” he joked, giving Geoff’s butt a sharp smack. Geoff jumped at the contact, but quickly slapped Jack’s hand away from his rear.

“Don’t get any ideas,” he threatened, placing a quick kiss on Jack’s cheek before Gavin called all their attention back.

“Alright guys, everyone needs to put five sticky bombs on the tanker, I want this thing glowing,” Gavin called reaching in the backpack he’d brought and pulling his own bombs which he quickly threw on to the tanker. The rest of the crew copied and soon both sides were littered with the flickering bundles. 

“Okay if everyones set, we’ll split up go to our various locations and we wait for Michael or Jack’s mark to blow the tanker and move in. Agreed?” Gavin asked standing in front of the rest of the crew who nodded quickly, saying their final byes to their other halves and climbing in to the various vehicles.

“Hey Jack can I sponge a lift to the gas station,” Ray asked, jumping on to the back of Jack’s bike before he had a chance to reply. Jack nodded pulling the mask Ryan had given him down over his face and speeding out of the construction site. The engines left next leaving just Michael with his glowing tanker and the mumbles of his team in his ear.

“Alright the moment Michael pulls out of the construction site the heist is live, everyone knows the rules from there on,” Geoff’s voice sounded through the static in to everyone ears, a short chorus of ‘yeps’ filtering through after it.

The rules were that if you got ‘killed’ you went silent. Once you was back up you could continue fighting, especially if you was the one with the money, but from there it was down to the eyes in the sky to pick you up. It was a weird tradition, much like their ‘final’ nights together, but it was something that kept them semi-human and reminded everyone of their prior mortality.

“Right fire trucks are in position. Secret Ray, Secret Jack, you guys ready?” Gavin asked as he let the fire truck quietly rumble on the hiding ramp.

“I’ve got a visual from the roof opposite the gas station, ready to go,” said Ray, quickly setting up his gun as he squatted on the rooftop.

“Yep, bikes in position and I’ve got a visual from the store’s roof, Michael I can help guide you in if you need it,” Jack called kneeling on the roof so he wasn’t overly visual.

“Okay, Secret Michael when you’re ready, heist is live,” Gavin called.

The slow building adrenaline was in full flow now as Michael fired up the rumbling tanker and steered it slowly out of the construction site, hyper aware that the tiniest bump could ignite just one of the many glowing bombs and send him in a fiery ball of death. Dying sucked at the best of times, but in Michael’s eyes burning was one of the worst ways to go.

He carefully rolled around the corner of the gas station, spotting Jack on the roof as he edged between two of the pumps.

“Okay, truck is in place, wait for me to say that I’ve got the money before you blow it Geoff,” Michael called in to his headset, climbing out of the cab and leaving the door open so he didn’t risk slamming it.

“Secret Geoff,” Geoff corrected casually, bouncing slightly in the cab of his fire truck as he heard Michael enter the store.

The kind greeting of the clerk almost made Michael feel bad as he raised the Shrewsbury SMG he’d been gripping and threw a backpack toward the man, his voice muffled slightly behind the black carbon mask Ryan had given him as he yelled for the man to put all the money he had in the bag.

The man’s face bleached white as he raised his hands and slowly opened the register pushing the bundles of money and bags of change in to the bag,

“Everything from the safe as well!” he yelled, shooting around the man to make him move quicker. He was whimpering now, as he bent down toward the safe.

“Secret Michael need to hurry it up I can hear sirens,” Jack’s voice was edged with panic as he saw the flashing blue lights round the corner; sirens growing louder as they approached.

As soon as the man finished throwing the money in the bag Michael called for Geoff to blow the tanker and shot the clerk in the head. But being out of range Jack had to fire several shots in to it before the thing blew up, taking a couple cop cars with it and knocking Jack on to his back.

The force of the blast knocked the wind out of Jack as he impacted with the rough roofing and the sound of sirens and another explosion filled his ears along with the muted yelling of his team as they got in to position and began to fire hoses and guns toward the cops. As scrambled to his feet he spotted that one of the trucks had already blown up, it’s red exterior a mess of black ash from where it had been quickly hosed out.

“Jack, Secret Jack I’m coming round to you get ready!” Michael yelled in to the ear piece as Jack hurried toward the edge of building, jumping off and climbing on to the bike. He’d just kicked it in to life when he felt Michael jump on the back, his arm wrapping tightly around Jack’s waste as he sped out of the alley.

Gun shots fired behind him as Michael did his best to shot out the cop’s tires and drivers. Above them the sound of rotors filled the air and sent shadows cast by the moon sprawling across them. Jack knew that one of those shadows was friendly but distinguishing which one was difficult as he turned them quickly on to the highway. Michael’s curses littered his hearing as he hastily reloaded, trying to keep up and match and each of Jack’s turns while remaining on the bike.

Back at the gas station, it had been Gavin who’d blown up first. Ryan had quickly put him out before he’d started firing on all cylinders toward the cops but everything had gone wrong quickly after that. 

As Ryan climbed out to throw a few bombs and cover Michael's escape, a cop had got around his back and shot him, putting him quickly out of the game. Amongst the commotion Ray had also got shot, it seemed that police choppers had got to the scene a lot quicker than any of them had expected and he’d quickly been shot down. Their current saving grace was that Michael and Jack were already on the road; Kdin watching them from above as he posed as a news helicopter.

Geoff, being the only remaining fire truck had taken off soon after Michael had called an all clear and was currently racing his way toward the pier and jet skis. He had no idea what was going to happen now, he’d have to wait for everything to cool down before turning around and heading to the safe house where they were meant to be holding up.

Meanwhile Jack and Michael had taken the highway and were currently racing through the tunnels as car after car attempted to cut them off. Michael clung to Jack’s sides, crushing himself against the older man as they twisted and turned; narrowly avoiding each car until they could just see the end of the tunnel.

They didn’t have to worry too much about the dangers they faced once they were out though as one cop car skidded to a halt in front of them sending them them both flying. The impact put Jack out of the game instantly but Michael managed to hold out a couple a seconds before he too was shot down.

The B-Team had taken action after each game over, Kdin lowering the chopper enough for his two mercenary helpers to jump out and grab the men before hauling them in to the chopper and flying off. ****Lindsay had managed to do the same at the gas station, luckily there had been little police activity remaining there as they raced off after Geoff and the bike team which meant she could haul Ryan and a very singed Gavin in to the back seat of her car, throwing Ray in to a dumpster below his building before dragging him in to the car and using back alleys to avoid the cops.

They were the first arrive at the safe house, just a Geoff called that he was out in the middle of the ocean.

“Sorry Geoff, looks like you were the only one to live, want one of us to come get you? Think Celeb is still following your position,” Lindsay said in to her headset as she laid the guys out in the centre of the room. 

“Fuck sake, yeah sure, did Kdin pick up Michael and Jack?” he asked turning around and heading back until he spotted Celeb’s chopper.

“Yeah don’t worry we’ve got them Geoff, just trying to lose the cops and then we’ll head toward Dos Lonos,” Kdin replied, manoeuvring quickly quickly through the cloud layer.

Dos Lonos was located toward the South-West edge of Achievement City. Hidden up in the hills it had some great views and wasn’t easy to find unless you knew where to look. It was completely off radar as well with no cordless internet or cell phone service, because of this it was one of the crews least favourite spots when they weren’t all together but for laying low it was best.  
They mainly used it after their bigger heists or in olden days when they’d take other big bosses in order to gain territory. After one big hit they’d spent several months in the cramped space and that’s when they’d really started to explore the idea of a bigger relationship. Since that point things just seemed to stick and continue to work, with a few exceptions and bickerings of course, but overall everything ran smoothly. Now they were heading back there and boy was it gonna be fun trying to go over a completely failed heist with little moving room.

\-------

Ryan was the first to wake up, coughing and gasping as he pulled the bullet from beneath his shirt. He was lay on the floor beside Gavin and Ray, they were still unmoving but Ryan could already see the three bullet holes in Ray healing, he’d be awake soon.

He pushed himself up, noticing Michael and Jack sprawled out on the couch, their bodies limp and chests still but otherwise looking pretty comfortable in comparison to how he felt.

Walking toward the kitchen and dining area Ryan could hear the others, Kdin, Lindsay, Caleb all talking after each other but pretty much covered by the grumbles of Geoff as he leant against the counter grunting about how he finally lived and everyone else died.

“Oh fucking finally!” he yelled as Ryan stepped in to the kitchen, “Any of the other fuckers awake yet?” Ryan shook his head, leafing through the cabinets to find some painkillers in order to ease the throbbing in his chest and back.

“How the fuck did you even get shot?” Geoff asked, taking the bloodied mess of Ryan’s shirt as he got a glass of water and tipped back two painkillers.

“Cop snuck around my back as I was climbing back in to the cab after giving Michael some covering fire,” he said trying to twist to see the state of his back, “gonna guess I need a new jacket?” he asked Lindsay spotting it hung over one of the chairs at the dining table.

“Definitely needs a wash but you might be able to get away just a patch up on it,” she shrugged. Ryan pouted, he was sick of having to get new jackets, in hindsight maybe making the expensive jacket a staple of his look hadn’t been the best plan but it just looked to go to pass up.

As they stood in an easy silence another lot of gasps came from the other room, followed by several curses before both Michael and Ray padded in to the kitchen.

“Did you pick up the money?” Michael asked instantly as he entered.

Kdin nodded, “On the table, ready for you guys to split up,” he gestured toward the table, littered with various jackets and weapons and the backpack Michael had been carrying. Michael nodded catching the box of pain killers as Ray threw them toward him and swallowing two dry.

“What even happened to you Michael?” Ray asked jumping up on to one of the counters. Michael was about to answer when a whole lot of coughing and spluttering cut him off.

“Bloody hell!” Gavin yelled, his British accent thick as he ran a hand through his quickly growing hair. Most of it had singed in the blaze and he still felt pretty new and sore on areas like his arms and cheek but he was alive.

He was stood messing with his hair when Michael jumped on him from behind, sending them both flying over the back of the couch Michael had been previously lay on.

“Didn’t last eight fucking seconds!” he yelled poking and prodding at Gavin who squawked beneath him and attempted to get away, “You literally hit the only pump that hadn’t exploded,” Michael was in a fit of giggles now tickling and easily holding the other down.

“Alright, alright let him up, we still got the money thanks to Kdin, so lets run over what the fuck went wrong,” Geoff called pointing everyone back in to the kitchen.

“We not waiting for Jack?” Ray asked frowning toward Jack’s still unmoving figure.

“His shits all internal, gonna take a while, we may as well start without him since Michael can fill in most of the blanks,” Geoff excused, giving one last look to his boyfriend before following the rest through to the dining room.

The rerun of the heist mainly consisted of a lot of finger pointing, yelling and name calling before anything was really explained. It had obviously started with Gavin’s stupidity and Ryan having to put him out before covering his side and giving covering fire to Michael which had got him killed.  
Ray pointed out that the entitle explosion actually hadn’t detonated and that it had been Jack who’d blown up the tanker. Jack only had to confirm this once he was back with the living before he went to claim a bedroom and sleep off the rest of his recovery.

Bullet wounds and burns were one thing, but for some reason anything to do with being run over or internally messed up took forever to heal and really took it out of the person trying to the healing.

Kdin, Lindsay and Caleb had given their view points and in the end it was Geoff that was congratulated and given a slightly bigger cut than the other guys since he was only one that stayed alive. Michael had tried to argue the point saying that his death wasn’t his or Jack’s fault but it’d had been shot down when Gavin was laid to blame for the getaway vehicle being a bike.

With everything settled and the money split up, Geoff sent them to bed, retreating before any of the others to the room he was sharing with Jack.

Gavin made his way in to the kitchen, searching through the cupboards when he felt a prescense behind him. Looking over his shoulder he spotted Michael and Ray leaning on the opposite counters, their lips lifted in to knowing smirks.

“What?” he asked turning back to the cupboard and pulling out a box of tea bags and a mug as Ray and Michael moved to either side of him.

“Nothing, just wondering if you’re staying with Ryan again tonight,” Michael grinned, glancing at Ryan who was busy poking his finger through the bullet hole in the back of his jacket and huffing.

“Don’t know what you’re talking about,” Gavin lied, his focus on the mug and boiling kettle in front of him.

“Oh come on Gav, we know you slept with Ryan last night, just spill, he is our boyfriend after all,” Ray mocked, moving closer to Gavin’s side. Gavin felt his muscles stiffen, he’d forgotten about that.

Ryan’s easy, flirtatious nature had made him completely forget that he was actually deeply involved with everyone in the crew and not just physically. What if they were mad at him?  
‘ _Shit, do they know about the stuff that happened on the beach?_ ’ Gavin thought worriedly.

“Hey, hey Gav we’re just teasing, don’t sweat it boi, seriously go ahead and fuck Ryan if you want we’re not gonna stop you, he’s the one with the biggest reign in this whole thing,” Michael laughed, placing a hand on Gavin’s shoulder.

Gavin screwed up his brow for a second as he shook his head.

“We… We didn’t fuck,” he said. Ray laughed, quickly muting himself as Ryan walked through the kitchen and raised a questioning brow at the group but continued out of the door.

“Sure you didn’t Gavin, and me and Michael didn’t fuck last night either,” Ray scoffed. Gavin stopped making his tea and stepped back from the counter so the pair were in front of him.

“No seriously guys, we didn’t fuck, yeah me made out and there might have been grinding and stuff and we slept in the same bed, but I was too tipsy and tired to fuck anyone last night.”

The couple stared at him. When Ryan had refused to tell any of them what he and Gavin had done last night their ideas had instantly been to them fucking, hell there’d been enough sexual tension between the pair since Gain had been recruited. 

“You’re being serious right now?” Michael asked grinning widely. Gavin nodded his eyes wide like it was meant to be obvious, “Well that sure is a first,” he laughed, “Gavin Free the only man Ryan couldn’t fuck in a week,” he laughed wrapping an arm around Ray’s waist and practically pulling him from the kitchen as they laughed like a pair of children.

Gavin shook his head and went back to making his tea, reboiling the water and waiting with his eyes closed.

“You really are hurting my reputation you know,” came a husky voice from behind him as a tight grip fell on his waist and lips traced the shell of his ear.

Gavin’s eyes snapped open as he spun around and pressed himself in to the counter. Ryan was stood in front of him now, topless with his jeans hanging low on his hips, a devilish grin tugging at the edge of his mouth as fire burned behind his bright blue eyes.

“Ryan, I…I…” Gavin stammered as Ryan stepped toward him, his broad figure easily dwarfing Gavin as he felt his legs slowly turn to jelly.

“You know, most people usually don’t put up such a fight when it comes to sleeping with me, but I have to admit that this challenge has been fun,” Ryan all but hummed in Gavin’s ear as he pinned Gavin to the counter with his hips, fingers tracing slowly up and down Gavin’s side and jaw as he felt the younger shake slightly beneath him.

“Do you want me Gavin?” Ryan asked kissing slowly along his jaw and neck and biting softly at the sweet spot he’d found last night. Gavin keened in the back of his throat his hands coming up to the grip the counter as he tried to stay standing. Ryan bite slightly harder, “answer me,” he ordered. 

Gavin nodded quickly, “yes, yes, I want you, please Ryan, please,” he begged as Ryan raked his nails down Gavin’s back causing him to bend against Ryan.

“Come on then precious, lets go play,” Ryan teased, his voice husky as he stepped away from Gavin and twined their fingers together, leading them toward the bedroom Ryan had picked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Teasing, teasing, I know I'm sorry. I'll try my hardest to make it worth it, but I have 30pages of Semiotics of read about.  
> Hope you're enjoying the story so far... definitely a slow burner but I'm grateful for every comment and kudos so thanks for sticking with me guys :) xoxo


	16. Chapter 16

Gavin had expected Ryan’s domineering nature in the bedroom, he’d expected it when he was pressed against the bedroom door as it slammed shut; his arms pinned above his head while Ryan claimed his mouth.

The sharp nips and sucks that would leave marks around his neck while Ryan ground against him, his free hand clawing at the skin of Gavin’s lower back or pressing his hip back against the door. The only time Ryan released his hands was to remove his shirt and even then he heard a couple of the buttons pop and scatter across the flooring.

Gavin had taken his freedom and ran with it, scraping his nails down Ryan’s chest until he reached his hips and shoved hard enough to get the older man moving backwards toward the bed, but Ryan wasn’t one to bottom and span Gavin on to his back as soon as his knees hit the bedding. 

Once again Gavin’s arms were pulled above his head with a single order,

“Stay.” Ryan’s voice husky and dangerous as he let go of Gavin’s hands and reclaimed his mouth, pressing their denim clad members together and extracting porn worthy moans from the back of Gavin’s throat.

It had all been too much and soon Gavin had broken Ryan’s order, his hands entangling in the other man’s hair as he kissed and licked down Gavin’s chest tugging slightly at one nipple while his nails left imprints on Gavin’s sides.

“I thought I told you to stay?” Ryan hummed crawling back up Gavin’s body until he was straddling his waist, Gavin’s wrist gripped tightly in one hand while the other slowly unfastened his belt and tugged it teasingly from it’s loops.

“Maybe now you’ll stay still,” he chuckled, fastening the belt around Gavin’s wrists and securing them against the headboard.

All the while Gavin moaned and whined and begged, his hips grinding up to try and find some form of friction but Ryan wasn’t done teasing and Gavin was loving it as he climbed of Gavin and walked to the foot of the bed admiring Gavin laid out and bruised beneath him. He leant forward, unfastening Gavin jeans and tugging them off roughly, tossing them to the other side of the room where they fell with a thud in to the darkness.

All of this Gavin had expected. He’d expected to be teased and bitten and bruised. He’d expected demanding kisses and his body to be claimed entirely. He’d loved being pushed to edge and then pulled back as Ryan stretched him and teased him, toying with his prostate and overly-sensitive and eager member, until Gavin was writhing and begging beneath him. A light sweat covered Gavin’s entire body as he pulled against the restraint of the belt and grinded against Ryan’s fingers until they were pulled form him, leaving him empty and needy.

What he hadn’t expected was for Ryan to suddenly turn soft and caring after slicking himself up and grabbing a condom. Kissing his way back up Gavin’s body he could feel the younger man shaking beneath him, his sweat salty on Ryan’s lips until he reached Gavin’s and kissed him deeply, his hands continuing their travel up his arms to the belt that secured them as he unfastened belt letting Gavin’s arms loop hesitantly around his neck as he hitched Gavin’s legs up so they were locked firmly at his back.

Gavin whimpered slightly as Ryan pressed in to him, slow and steady until he bottomed out and waited for Gavin to get comfortable. Ryan peppered Gavin’s neck and face with kisses until the lad was comfortable, grinding with Ryan as he began to thrust slowly.

“Fuck,” Ryan cursed quietly burying his head against Gavin’s shoulder as Gavin scrapped his nails across the Gent’s shoulders panting and moaning as Ryan ground against his prostate, “you feel amazing Gav,” Ryan encouraged, lapping sloppily at Gavin’s neck and indulging himself in Gavin’s moans and gasps of pleasure.

“Right there Ryan, harder, please,” Gavin begged pulling Ryan’s lips to his as he picked up the pace; fingers tangling in Ryan’s hair as he felt his stomach curl and muscles clench.

“You gonna cum for me Gavin?” Ryan growled pushing himself up in to a kneel to grab Gavin’s thighs.

The change in position sent Gavin reeling over the edge, white streams spilling out over his stomach as his body arched off the mattress. Every muscle in body clenching and pulling Ryan over the edge with him and sending him crashing on top of Gavin; barely supporting himself on his elbows either side of Gavin’s head.

“Holy fuck Ryan,” Gavin gasped a few moments later once they’d both come down from their highs and Ryan had pulled out falling next to Gavin as he pulled off the condom and tied it, throwing it in the direction of the bin but unsure of it went in or not.

“Enjoy that did you?” Ryan asked jokily, his heart still thumping faster than normal he hand Gavin his shirt which he’d flung at the side of the bed earlier. Gavin took wiping off his stomach much as he could before throwing that too in the direction of the bin, flopping on to Ryan’s chest with a small nod.

“Can understand why I could here you and Michael through the walls now,” he murmured, struggling to keep his eyes open as Ryan chuckled.

As Gavin fell in to sleep Ryan stayed awake. It wasn’t unusual for him to not get more than two or three hours, but something about the feel of Gavin’s skin beneath his fingers as he traced small patterns across his back and shoulders, and soft breath as it brushed over Ryan’s dusting of chest hair soon had him feeling drowsy and he fell gently in to a light but satisfied slumber.

\-------

The next day Gavin kept his head low and neck hidden. The methodical connecting of wires and programming stopped him from thinking too much about the giggles and knowing smirks that crept from Michael and Ray as they walked behind him. While the lads were the worst for the torment that day, Geoff’s constant observation made him just as uneasy, with is boss leant over his shoulder Gavin knew that Geoff could see the bruises and marks that Ryan had left.

He wasn’t bothered by it too much, he had no doubt that everyone else in the crew and probably the surrounding areas would have heard Ryan and him since they’d made no effort to be quiet. But there was something that made Gavin stiffen and shiver slightly every time Geoff looped a hand over his shoulder and leant low; close to his ear. Geoff adjusting his grip and brushing his thumb or finger over the slightly bumped and purple skin.

While it was only Geoff that came over to speak to Gavin and check his progress, Ryan would come over whenever Gavin lost track of time, a plate of food or some form of drink in his hand.

Ryan liked watching Gavin work, his brow furrowed and hair flopping over his eyes no matter how many times he pushed it back, nimble fingers stripping and linking wires before connecting them to one of the four monitors or key boards or giant PC column. 

However Ryan was all to aware that every glace he spared at Gavin was being analysed by the other members of the crew. Michael seemed to have got it to his head that it was he and Ray that pushed Ryan to make his move, and for Gavin to finally say yes.  
And if Ryan was being honest he’d admit that the teasing may have been the reason he’d started of the night fairly forceful. But it had also been down to the left over adrenaline he’d felt during the heist and the slight need to feel normal after coming back again. But the rest of the evening he’d let himself actually feel, it was true that he cared for the younger man in the same way that he did the other members of the crew but there was something also there that he’d only ever felt with Meg. Some type of connection that wasn’t just purely physical and spiked with lust, it was care and comfort and if he dared to think it love.

But keeping it himself Ryan left Gavin to get on with his work, as did everyone else, splitting up to refocus after a heist was usual for them during the day. They’d separate off, Geoff and Jack mainly focusing on the business side, and checking in with the base and B-Team constantly to make sure everything was still running, only now and again did they call over the others, Ryan and Ray to check ordinance and mercenary numbers while Michael was left to toy and meddle with any scraps he could find or stuff from the garage.

While Michael was their wild card, a master of explosives and not afraid to use them, he was actually smart in what he did and a lot of the explosives Fake AH used were personally designed by Jones before they were handed over to the ordinance team to finalise and mass produce.

By that evening Michael had created two unexplosive prototypes that he was going to make destructive and test out tomorrow, Ray had prepared and organised another branch of his drug ring to move in to some unmarked territory with the help of a few of the newbies that Fake AH had hired a few days ago, and Ryan had talked Geoff in to ordering a load of new ordinance including new mini guns and rocket launchers.

Gavin on the other hand had managed to set up an entire PC and communications unit and connect it to the main frame of the base without it being retraceable to either location. Ryan had to admit that he’d enjoyed Geoff’s very puzzled looks when Gavin was explaining how he’d rooted it through several off shore servers and encrypted every form of communication wave between the base and this hideout.

“The plan eventually is to connect all the hideouts in the same way so that files can be distributed and accessed between PCs,” Gavin explained as he set about finalising a few pieces of the code that would allow him to connect to the PC from another source, “hopefully then if we’re spread between different hideouts we can all be on the same page with information.”

Geoff nodded as Gavin clicked out of whatever programmes he’d been using and brought up the base’s mainframe,

“I’ve got surveillance on the other end waiting for you to contact them, it’s set up for video, audio and just basic text, it’s basically Skype or MSN except way more secure,” Gavin finalised, standing up and offering his seat to Geoff.

Geoff sat down taking the controls while Gavin went to find Ryan, being the only other tech guy that had any chance of cracking through the defences Gavin trusted him to test out the software while Geoff was on his call.

Three hours later and Ryan had finally given up trying to intercept and track the communication between Geoff and the base, all the while Geoff had been blissfully unaware while only being a wall width away.  
Managing to talk to surveillance who were able to send him footage of their moving targets and communicating with the B-Team wo could share files and recorded intel about their rival’s current movements was a lot easier when Geoff could receive and talk about the information then and there.

By the evening everyone had crowded in to the living room. Jack and Geoff cuddled together on one couches slowly dozing off, while the other sat sprinkled about on the floor and loveseat watching some film that Gavin had picked out.

“Oh, ay, hey watch this shot!” Gavin squealed leaning up from where he’d been squished between Ray and Ryan. The shot in question was a slow motion clip, beautifully shot to capture the detail and action of the scene.

“Yeah okay, it’s a slowmo shot, what about it?” Michael asked turning his head slightly but not moving so far as to remove Ray’s hand where it was casually messing with his curls.

“Well did you think it was a good shot?” Gavin asked picking at a nail he’d split while building the PC. He could feel the groups eyes watching him curiously.

“Well yeah I guess, well framed, decent colour in the explosion, why?” Michael asked, his head was tilted back now, trying to get a better look at the other lad while remaining within Ray’s reach.

“Just wondering if you thought it was good... cause I actually, shot it,” Gavin mumbled, his voice low and child-like as he glanced back up at the screen and where he’d paused it.

“You used to be a camera guy?” Ray asked curiously turning and throwing his legs over Gavin and Ryan so Michael could squish next to him, thankful that the couch was deep enough to fit two laying down.

“Yeah just slow motion stuff, but it was fun to do, paid well until they found people and machines and editors that could do it better,” Gavin was grumbling now picking at a loose thread on Michael’s jeans instead of his nails.

“Fuck so you came in to crime off the back of a highlife career,” Ray guessed surprised, “that must have been a culture shock.”

Gavin nodded, frowning slightly as he thought about how to word his next question without sounding insensitive.

“Yeah it was... how about you? What did you do before your criminal days?” he asked, Ray thought for a moment.

He’d been a shop assistant at first, but his boss had liked him and he’d quickly worked his way to a slight position of power within the store. But small shops don’t really pay well and when he first got in to dealing and gangs he’d found the pay out to be a hell of a lot bigger.

Michael admitted to being a manual worker before he’d got in to explosive although the two kind of went hand-in-hand when it came to understanding demolition. He’d been an honest worker, put bread on the table to help his mom along with his older brothers, they’d all worked, all been close. But his brothers were all seeing girls and most of their wage went on gambling and drink, Michael hadn’t wanted that and when his mom got ill the only logical thing to do was take the job that offered the most. That’s where Geoff had found him,

“By the time I got back home my mom was long buried and brothers long gone with wives and families of their own. They still thought I was dead as far I know,” Michael mumbled out in to Ray’s chest as the younger combed through his hair. He took a deep breath feeling how heavy their conversation a had gotten and attempted to lighten it,

“But who gives a damn, they were drunks and I was having the time of my life, still am. Thankful that Geoff took me in and I met you guys,” he leant up smiling at sleeping couple and the guys in front of him before turning to Ray and pulling their lips together.

Gavin couldn’t help but smile at them as he shifted slightly under Ryan’s arm which he’d stretched across the back of the couch.

“How about you Rye?” Gavin asked, he was getting sleepy now, surrounded by the warmth of the three other males he felt safe and warm and protected. Ryan hummed in response,

“What did you do before you became the killer you are now? Before you went looking for Geoff?” Gavin asked again. He felt Ryan shrug.

“This and that... I was an accountant at some point, then a personal banker for some rich folk. Somewhere along the line I learnt some computer stuff and started working in that area, got a job offer from Apple when they were starting up and worked there for a while. I think… oh, I became a coder for some other big company, which when they tried to fire me and claim my work as their own I went on my first killing spree, that was fun, dropped a monitor on some guys head; smashed another in to a pulp with his own desk drawer,” Ryan listed off, his grin growing as he thought back to that first time and how the blood and goop had felt as it slipped over his hand and flecked his face.

“Way to kill a mood Rye-Bread,” Michael grumbled from the edge of the couch, his lips shiny and puckered from where he’d been kissing Ray. Ryan shrugged before turning turning it in to a stretch.

“Whatever, I’m going to bed anyway,” he chuckled letting Ray and Michael’s feet slid from his lap as he stood, tapping Jack lightly to wake him and send the couple to bed. Jack nodded, shaking Geoff lightly before practically carrying him down the hall to their room.

Michael and Ray followed soon after while Ryan and Gavin cleaned up the bottles and cups that everyone had left lying around.

“Could I sleep in your bed tonight Rye?” Gavin asked quietly as he rinsed out and cup, handing it to Ryan to dry and put away.

“If you want, don't feel like you have to though,” he clarified.

“No, no, I want to. I’m still trying to get used to this whole hideout in the middle of nowhere thing and you make me feel safer,” Gavin admitted draining the sink and drying off his hands. Ryan nodded putting away the last cup and looping an arm around Gavin’s shoulder, placing a light kiss on his temple.

“Okay, just don’t expect the same performance as last night,” he chuckled as they walked through the now silent living room and down the hall.

“Don’t worry, I’m too knackered tonight to even attempt anything, just sleeping in the same bed as you is enough for me,” Gavin laughed sitting on the edge of the bed and pulling off his shirt. Ryan nodded smiling as he too got undressed and climbed in to bed, pulling Gavin’s back to his chest the moment the lad got between the clean sheets and fell in to an easy sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey I'm sorry these updates are so few and far between, trying to balance multiple forms of creativity as actually becoming counter productive... xoxo


	17. Chapter 17

“Ray we have three-day cool down period you know that!” Geoff yelled as Ray bolted about his and Michael’s room grabbing his sniper wear and holders before rooting through the various drawers to find the back up magazines of ammo.

“Hes not gonna listen to you Geoff,” Michael muttered, he was leant beside the bedroom door watching his boyfriend as he sipped through his coffee.

“Damn right hes going to listen to me,” Geoff growled taking several strides toward Ray and grabbing him the shoulders and giving him a quick shake to grab his attention, “you are not going back to the city, so just calm fuck down,” he grunted shoving Ray away a little harder than he’d meant too and sending the Purto rican stumbling in to the bed.

“Hey, Hey Geoff no need to be so rough,” Michael called stepping between the two. Geoff shook his head as Ray stood up, stepping around Michael.

“Geoff my guys are in some sort of trouble downtown, I can’t just leave them, it’d be like you leaving Gav or Jack or any of us. Please just let me go, I’ll be back by this evening,” Ray’s voice was calm and level as he spoke to Geoff; trying to get him to understand why he needed to get to the city.

“Ray I’m sorry, you’re not going on your own, not when the rivals been seen lurking around the area,” Geoff clarified.

“Then I won’t go alone, I’ll take Mogar with me and I’m sure Vav can keep me tracked now that he’s got the surveillance up and running,” Ray tried linking his fingers with Michael’s who nodded.

Geoff turned to look at the other three guys who had gathered in the doorway, his eyes landing on Gavin who gave a small nod.

“The car heres already set with a tracker, I just have to calibrate it to the system,” Gavin shrugged feeling Ryan squeeze his shoulder lightly in approval but out of sight of the other team members.

Geoff huffed, turning back to the couple before him, “Fine, but you better be back here before nightfall otherwise I’m send a crew down to find you,” Geoff warned stalking from the room as the pair began to gather up their weaponry. Gavin gave them a small smile ducking under Ryan’s arm and heading toward the garage to pull out the tracker’s drive and calibrate it to his new location system.

Ryan and Jack followed after heading back to what they’d been doing before the yelling had started, before Ray had got the message through the base email that the downtown area of his drug cartel was looking shifty and potentially in trouble.  
The lad hadn’t spared two breaths before he’d ran to the bedrooms, Michael going after him and yelling how he couldn’t leave with the city still buzzing with police on the hunt for their heads. Geoff had stepped in after reading over the email and hearing Michael’s voice give up.

Now as Gavin refitted the tracker and Michael and Ray loaded up the car Geoff couldn’t help the uneasy feeling in his stomach as he watched them from the porch.

“They’ll be fine,” Jack comforted from beside him, placing an arm around Geoff’s shoulder and pulling the older man toward him as Gavin made some final checks on the car and it’s tracker’s signal.

“I don’t like being stuck out here while a rival is trying to take over my territory,” Geoff grunted watching the lads bid a farewell to each other before the car disappeared in a cloud of dust and began its journey through the hills toward the city. Jack smiled after them, kissing the top of Geoff’s head lightly and offering a hand out to Gavin and steering them back inside.

The rest of the afternoon and early evening was filled with Geoff constantly standing over Gavin’s shoulder as he flicked through surveillance footage and kept up with the tracker from the boy’s car. 

True to their word they’d stopped just inside of the downtown boundary and ditched the car in a cover space they’d used to hide from cops before. It was basically a locked facility with one way in and one way out through the high steel gate, unless you climbed the building that rested beside it.

Ray knew they’d be up for a bit of a walk and much to Michael’s dismay chose to stick to the roof tops until they were close enough. Neither of them had a solid idea of what was going on, all they knew was that the base had received an SOS call from one of Ray’s groups in this area, however they weren’t entirely sure why the SOS was sent out.

They made it to the shop that Ray used as the cover business, a store selling e-cigarettes and vapour refills, but in the back and upstairs was where the real business was. Ray’s own personal brand of weed ‘with a little added swag’ he put it.  
What he meant was that it was laced with low brand coke filth and coated in powered sugar that barely came across. It was all to add weight and get away with making a profit, although it wasn’t like Ray needed it, he gave most of the extra money to charities that combated homelessness and addiction which was an irony that made him laugh too often.

“I’ll take the back,” Michael muttered already turning toward the alley that lead around the back of the store. Ray nodded pulling his gun from it’s holster on his hip before grabbing Michael’s hand.

“Be careful,” he warned, Michael nodded once giving Ray’s hand a reassuring squeeze before he jogged in to the alley, vaulting the iron fencing and drawing his gun; his back pressed against the wall.

Ray meanwhile walked through the front door of the store. The owner was one of his own men and so he knew that he shouldn’t encounter any form of problem as he stepped inside, the small bell ringing through the still room as he entered, flipping the sign from open to closed so no civilian could follow. The scent of gun power and smoke filled the air as he pushed through the break at the empty counter, it swung back with a dull thud that echoed behind him, pushing toward the rear of the store Michael’s voice came through the white noise in his ear.

“Loading docks clear coming in to the storage room now, over,” he called vaulting up on to the stone walk way and pushing open the loading doors. There was a truck in the loading bay but it was empty and with no driver to be found.

“Alright back rooms clear, I’m heading upstairs now, over,” Ray replied as he turned to walk up the narrow stair case. Here the smell of a gun fight grew thick, smoke tainted with the all too common metallic scent of blood.

The walls upstairs were bare as were floor boards, their wood coated with dirt and grime that had stained over the years of grubby boots thumping against it. But when he looked closer he could see that there were patches of dark and damp covering the flooring in spattered and dragged patterns reaching toward the large room that covered the whole first floor (par for the slim corridor whose windows looked out over the front of the store).

“Coming up the stairs, over,” Michael warned, his foot connecting with the wooden step and causing it to creak slightly.

But Ray barely heard his boyfriends warning, or the creaking of the wood as he pushed open the door that was usually filled with people working. A buzz of razor blades and grinders, spliffs being rolled again and again before being placed in to the signature brown baggie and packaged in to boxes ready to be shipped out. 

The stench of weed would fill the air to point that it became nauseous, now it wasn’t the familiar stench of bud that caused Ray to stop in his tracks, but the sickening copper smell that spilled from the room. Washing over him Ray stood fixed to the spot, he’d seen death before, he’d seen blood baths and had his lovers die in his arms but still the sight of his men mauled, bullet ridden and piled in to stacks at their stations had him swallowing the bile that rose in his throat.

When Michael stood beside him his eyes barely scrapped across the men that had fixated Ray, instead they took in the walls that were practically painted a now rusted red with black puddles sticking to their base.

Ray took a step in to the room, trying to breath shallow so he didn’t take in too much of the stench, and Michael followed, his gun still gripped tight in his fist with his finger hovering beside the trigger.

Everything seemed to be covered in blood or pieces of flesh and clothing. Blood stuck to the floor boards, puddles still slick beneath their congealed surface or stretched out and reaching toward the various corpses that surrounded the pair.

“Ray…” Michael said, his voice sounding too loud in the silence. Ray looked at him following the hand that Michael pointed toward one wall.

It was the main wall, a white board usually scrawled with their stock numbers and orders and shipments was now the back drop of six decapitated bodies, tied and slumped to the bar chairs that usually sat at the tables. If the bodies weren’t enough to anger the pair the writing behind them was.

Smudged in blood across the board was written, ‘ _This is your first warning, give up - M_ ’.

“First warning?” Ray muttered, holding back a gag.

“I can only guess the rival,” Michael answered staring at the board and ignoring the bodies as he fished his phone from his pocket and snapped a couple pictures of the message.

Ray’s jaw tightened that the idea that the rival was now using this as a game, taking out their separate businesses one by one, but he couldn’t dwell too long. The drive in to the city had taken a lot longer than either Michael or he had expected and there’d be hell to pay if they weren’t back before it got dark, and they now had to take all the pictures they could stomach and burn the place to the ground.

The pair ran like clock-work, snapping pictures of everything and anything, working around each other with little thought or care for it they got the same pictures. Before setting about destroying any evidence, last thing they needed was for police to come sniffing around and labelling it a mass murder case rather than a gang war.

“I’ll call Geoff, tell him to get on our hands at the pig pen, stop anyone from coming to check it out,” Ray told Michael, leaving him to place and work with the explosives and incinerators they’d brought as precaution.

Geoff answered on the second ring, his voice slightly panicked but fighting to keep control,

“Hey Geoff, can you get a message to those at the cop and ambulance stations closest to downtown, we’ve gotta do some clean up and don’t need them poking about,” Ray said, his voice level.

“Yeah course buddy, everything alright down there?” Geoff asked, concern pulling his brow as Jack rubbed comforting circles across his back.

“Yeah, we’ll be back soon,” Ray replied hanging up before Geoff could ask anything else and returning to help Michael with the explosives.

“They’ve got to do clean up,” Geoff explained, placing the phone back in its holder. Jack nodded turning toward the computer and sending out a message to the base and insider hands. Gavin looked up from where he reloading ammunition with Ryan at the coffee table, but Ryan had locked eyes with Geoff.

The pair seemed to silently communicate, understanding that something was very wrong and seemed to decided that it meant war as Ryan snapped the gun he’d been loading closed and stood, walking over to Geoff with it still clasped in his hand.

“We still have nowhere to start,” Geoff whispered, only loud enough that Ryan who was stood almost chest to chest with him.

“We’ve got to have a lead on something of theirs by now, otherwise their keeping something from us, and that not gonna stand to live a second longer,” Ryan warned, anger smouldering behind his eyes as he stalked out the backdoor, toward the small shooting range he’d made and firing several blind shots toward the barrels he knew were hidden somewhere in the growing darkness.

\-------

It only took a couple hours to convince Geoff that they whole crew had to get back to the city, and back to the main base, and by the time the late evening had rolled around all of Michael and ray’s pictures were uploaded to main data base and a organised investigation in the activity of the area had been launched.

Ray mainly sat in the back of the room by the windows, playing through level after level of Halo with Michael’s head laid in his lap beside him. Gavin and Ryan worked closely with the B-Team checking the surveillance and running through the various teams they had in that area to make sure none of those were in danger. While Geoff and Jack, along with Celeb, Kdin, and a whole of host surveillance and intel folk, including Meg and Ashley, worked on running over and compiling any information they’d managed to pick up on their rival.

Much Geoff’s dismay and further irritation it seemed like they knew nothing. They had the tracks of various attempted hits that had taken place, police reports of crimes that had taken place outside of Ramsey’s main territories but matched those of the rival’s movements, potential locations that had been checked out only to come up fruitless and finally the newest hit on Ray’s downtown pride and joy.

“I want every bit of man power dedicating to the finding this bastard,” Geoff growled throwing his hands toward the piles of paper.

It was almost three in the morning by this point and most of the base was quietly humming with the sound of idle computers and the odd click of a door as someone worked the nightshifts. Everyone’s eyes had grown tired and bloodshot; energy drink cans and candy wrappers littered desks and filled trash cans but still everyone was slowly running on empty. 

Ray had stopped playing video games a few hours ago resorting to just laying on the couch with Michael dozing against his chest, playing with the curls in Michael’s hair and staring in to space. Gavin had even given up, rewatching footage he’d looked over a thousand times but no longer seeing it until Ryan tugged him away from the computer.

Ryan had barely spoken a word, that wasn’t harsh or an order, to anyone since they’d left the house and returned to the city. He was angry and irritated and honestly just wanted to shoot something in order to make himself feel better but knowing this Geoff had order him on a murder break and Ryan knew that he wouldn’t be able to get away with anything in that time.  
He’d thrown himself in to his coordination instead, searching through the various mercenaries and teams he had scattered in and around the downtown area and ordering movements of those that could be potential next targets.

He hoped that since his teams were better trained than that of Ray’s drug gangs, they stood a better chance of being left alone. But it didn’t matter how well they were trained if the rival chose to blow up the buildings they called home, and with the ordinance tracking they had on the rival that was a completely plausible fear.

By the time Geoff was convinced to stop and let everyone go home it was close to five in the morning. Most people now worked without actually seeing or were that tired that they just couldn’t respond. Even Gavin, despite continuously pumping himself with Red Bull had curled in to the cushions of the arm chair beside Ray and Michael.

“Come on Geoff, at least get a couple hours, we’ll stay here tonight, no point in trying to get the lads back home,” Jack mumbled, prying Geoff away from the steel table and paper work that he’d been staring at. He nodded numbly and allowed himself to be pushed toward the door while Jack and Ryan helped to wake up or carry the other’s.

Upstairs they had a large communal bedroom, it was rarely used as they often went home but during long planning sessions or scare times they’d use it more out of comfort and protection.

In reality it was just three double beds pushed together along one wall with several duvets and almost three dozen pillows scattered across its surface. But to the team had become a symbol of peace and protection where every single person had a place and fitted with the others and by morning they’d be tangle of limbs and blankets, with chests being used as pillows rather than the goose feather.

It was comforting and with the lack of sleep and strained eyes they quickly got in to comfortable positions; tangled together beneath the covers.


	18. Chapter 18

“Hey I’m home,” Lindsay called wearily in to the silent house as it creaked; heating springing in to life as the morning arose.

“Jesus Christ, I’d thought you’d died or something,” came a voice from down the hall, followed by footsteps as a well dressed woman in suit pants and a shirt rounded the corner and white rubber cat mask in her hand.

“Yeah I’m sorry Geoff kinda went off on one with the whole ‘destroy Ray’s business’ thing, I was working till five going over files and surveillance,” she explained perching herself at the breakfast bar as the other woman placed a fresh cup of coffee in front of her. She cocked an eyebrow.

“They getting any closer?” she asked an edge of worry, for the team she held so dearly, to her voice.

“Not as close as they would be if information wasn’t being held back,” Lindsay said resting her hand on top of the other’s and tracing circles around her knuckles, “we’ll be fine.” Lindsay felt the need to say it more for herself than her companion but the gesture seemed to comfort them both enough that a decision was made.

“Let a little more information through, uncover a couple of the more recent hideouts, who delivered the explosives that kind of thing but make sure they’re taken care of before Ramsey can get there,” Lindsay nodded as the other woman slipped in to her plimsoles, a set of heels on the bar stool beside her.

“I’ve got a meeting with Mortez today about another bit of fun we’re going to have, but I should be back for tea. Are you really going back in later?”

Lindsay nodded, gulping at the last part of her coffee and wiping her mouth on the back of her sleeve, “I’m gonna get a couple hours in, try to head back for ten, get a message to the others.”

The other thought for a moment, slowing as she pulled her coat on and fixed her hair before nodding and agreeing that was probably the best idea. Wrapping her arms around Lindsay’s shoulders she gave her a quick peck on the cheek.

“I’ll see you later,” she called heading out of the door toward the car. Lindsay stayed sat at the bar until she heard the engine roar off in to the distance before moving off to place her cup in the sink and reside to bed for a few hours. 

Knowing that some of the team would already be in position she sent out a message on what information to release and a half arsed story about how they’d got it. The other’s would know what to do.

\-------

With four hours in the bank it wasn’t long before the crew were moving again. Bundles of blankets shifted and curled as the lads and gents slowly detached themselves from each other but it took longer before they finally began to accept the reality that was quickly being thrust upon them and the unavoidable fight that was threatening to bust through their comfort.

Geoff shifted groggily between Jack and Ryan, his eye stinging every time he opened them more than a couple millimetres and allowed the dull sun light to hit his pupils. Beside him Ryan turned his arm falling from where it had been covering his face and resting just above Geoff’s head with his fingers twinging in the short crop of Jack’s hair causing the Gent to turn in to the touch and forcing Geoff on to his side and curl around Ryan.

Geoff didn’t complain, working with the sleeping men in a way that he’d grown accustom, twisting slightly to wrap an arm around Ryan’s waist and use his chest as a firm pillow coming almost nose to nose with Gavin who dusty hair was covering his closed eyes.

Geoff smiled at the peaceful look on Gavin’s face, while his hand brushed up and down his back. Behind him lay Michael, starfished with one arm around Ray’s shoulder and the other stretched out toward Gavin who had obviously been curled there at some point in their sleep.

Geoff sighed heavily through his nose, ruffling Ryan’s chest hair and the stands of Gavin’s hair making the younger man groan. Gavin’s eyes scrunched slightly, his nose wrinkling before his eyes blinked open and adjusted to the light.

He grinned slightly when he locked eyes with Geoff but a yawn quickly took him over and pushed him in to a seated position. Ryan shifted then, the weight and heat disappearing from his chest as he reached blindly for Gavin with intent to pull him back down without opening his eyes.

Apparently the shift in mattress had also awoke Michael because soon Gavin was pulled back down with a short squawk before Michael moved to curl back around him, Ray following without a second thought.

“We are not getting up yet,” Michael grumbled, burying his cheek in Gavin’s back and making Ryan chuckle.

“I agree with that, can we just stay here,” Ray’s voice came from beneath the duvet where he’d buried his head against Michael’s waist.

Geoff smiled toward the voice, reaching over Gavin to ruffle through Ray’s hair. 

“I really wish we could buddy,” he murmured, feeling Jack tighten at his back signalling that he too would rather stay right there.

In theory the idea sounded appealing, they’d done it before after certain heists where they’d just all spent the day in bed with movies and junk food as they each fell in and out of consciousness. But it reality, with a rival breathing down their neck and threatening to strike again at any time, they didn’t have the luxury.

“Please till noon then, my body can’t do another twelve hours right now,” Ryan begged, shifting further down in the duvet and bringing Geoff and Gavin’s head more on to his shoulders. Geoff shook his head but made no attempt to move, except to nestle closer to Ryan and Jack, feeling grounded between their warm bodies.

\-------

The paradise was too short lived as noon sounded on several phones, erupting groans and begs of no from within the mountains of blankets.

A knock on the door finally had them untangling, Geoff calling for them to come in as he pushed himself up. Meg opened the door, her hair scraped in to a thick bun and bags beneath her eyes.

“Geoff, we’ve found something on the rival we think you should see,” her voice was tired but still excited as the sound of the offices buzzed through the open door. Geoff nodded, shooing her away with the promise that they’d be down at the base with in a few minutes.

Patting Jack on the shoulder the younger gents slowly rolled out of the bed, his bare feet hitting floor as he sorted his shirt while the other slowly began to sit up. Stretching and groaning before crawling off the bed with their hair at every angle and sleep still being rubbed from their eyes.

They didn’t bother dressing, being half naked was a usual thing when teams stayed for a night or several at the base, and so no one looked twice when the six most wanted men in the world padded in to the base in various combos of underwear and pyjama bottoms matched with a t-shirt or not shirt in the cases of Michael, Ryan, and Gavin.

Meg was used to seeing Ryan shirtless, hell she was used to seeing Michael since he didn’t seem to own a shirt when annoyed or irritated, but Gavin she wasn’t used to. The lean muscle beneath golden skin and sandy chest hair took her off guard as he leant between her and Ashley to look at the information and footage they’d gathered from Barbara and her team.

“Hey Meg! I know Gavin’s a new sight to behold but we’ve got work to do,” Geoff ordered, following Meg’s locked gaze before Gavin quickly stepped back, bumping in to Michael’s shoulder and feeling his cheeks grow hot.

“Oh yeah, yeah, we’ll we’ve got some footage of unusual activity around the east side, close by the coast and also some footage of the hit on Ray’s place,” Meg rambled clicking through cameras quickly.

Michael felt Ray stiffen slightly beside him as Geoff brought up the cut together footage that led toward Ray’s cover business. The footage itself probably wouldn’t have looked unusual, just a normal white delivery truck heading for a drop off point at the store. Ray knew the truck it was the one they always used for transporting the drug load from the docks to the locations, it was always the same drivers but the ones in the cab weren’t who Ray knew.

Meg paused the footage blowing up and cleaning the section that showed the cab of the truck. Three people were sat in the seats, long sleeves, gloves and bullet proof vests covered their skin but the freakiest part of the image was the masks that each person wore. Each an animal of some description with garish grins and mad eyes faced toward the scenes.

“They’re seriously creepier than Ry’s skull mask,” Michael grimaced, as the group stared at the image.

“What even are they?” Jack asked. Everyone’s eyes were fixed to the screen as they unhappily studied the masks.

One was a cat, dark grey with off set pink eyes, one looked like some sort of deer, while the last was a dog mask that looked too much like the ‘DOGE’ meme for Ray to be comfortable.

“So what we’re dealing with the fucking farm yard now,” Geoff yelled, clearly frustrated as he gestured toward the screen and towered over Meg his hands in fists at his sides, “you know, we have the best fucking equipment and people known to world working in this god damn building and it really took you this fucking long to figure out that we were looking for people wearing fucking animal masks!” Geoff shoved at the paper work and printed photos that sat in front of Meg making her shoot backward out the way.

“Hey! Hey!” Ryan yelled stepping between Geoff and Meg while Jack clutched his shoulders, “Calm the fuck down Geoff you know it’d not their fault, this ones good.”

“Yeah but no ones this good without slipping up, maybe this lot are on their side,” Geoff was angry, irritated and so far past tired that he barely felt in control of himself any more.

“You know they wouldn’t do that,” Jack shushed in his ear pulling Geoff back slightly as Meg ran from the room, Gavin instinctively going after her while Ryan stayed to help calm down Geoff.

No one had ever been this good at avoiding the company before. But then no one had made a direct attack on the Ramsey empire in many years, Geoff was willing to except that his rival might be good but his team had always been and had to be better than them. For every step a rival took Ramsey and his team had always been two steps ahead, now they were lagging behind and seemed to still be falling at every hurdle and missing every turn their opponent took.

This information was good, it was a start at least, they could get people out to the locations and track the truck back from the docks; maybe find out where the three freaks had got control of it. That was until another SOS message flashed through the system sending everyone in to overdrive as they rushed to get an eye on the company.

The company in question was a base on the west side of Achievement City, across a large area of water that almost split the city from the mainland but was held together by a strip in the north-west. Boarding the edge of the Ramsey empire it was one of the smaller defences that Geoff had Ryan set up at a mercenary post to stop the small crews from a neighbouring city from making a big mistake.

Geoff watched at Ryan’s face paled before the former lone mercenary and Mad King kicked him in to gear.

“Get me eyes on that base now!” He yelled rushing one of the computers while firing calls out to other mercenary teams near by in hope that they’d be able to get there.

It took just ten minutes for the nearest mercenary base to get to the boarder and when they did they place was quiet. Tire marks and foot prints still marred the gravel park way and surrounding grass, windows were blown out with bullet holes and one area creaked from where the insides seemed to smoke.

The leaders of the group, Miles Luna and Blain Gibson split the team to find separate entrances and call when clear. Methodically they went through until they came to the main reception of the building, a large space usually accessible from a set of large front doors but that had been barricaded by pieces of fallen rubble from where the front arch and attached balcony had collapsed.

“On my mark, three, two, one…” the teams pulled open the large doors, taking in the sight before them, five bodies hung from the railing on the second floor, their head hung forward with arms obviously dislocated from the joints that they hung from the floor. Beneath them lay other bodies, streaming blood in to a communal puddle while others lay sprawled across the stairs.

A short crack of glass from behind them caught their attention, but too late as shots fired easily through the legs, shoulders, and heads of the team adding them easily to the pile of their comrades.

Ryan was just getting ready to leave for the base himself when the screens throughout the base began to glitch, accompanied by a stomach clenching scream that morphed in to a laugh as a video began to play. It showed the interior of the mercenary post, chipped dry wall and shattered glass filled the screen until it reached the edge of a door frame and panned up and wide taking in the blood bath that filled the reception floor.

Everyone in the base froze in horror as the camera centred in the hall, moving up to take in the five bodies and five people stood at the rail above them. Each one wore an animal mask more disturbing than the last and each clutched a large knife, some good enough to be counted as machetes, in their hands.

Almost on command they cut the bodies from the rail sending them falling to floor and pulling a large piece of fabric down with them, leaving it hung off the rail, ‘ _Second warning, this is getting fun – M_ ’. The video froze there glitching out before being replaced with what looked like a live feed of the building from the outside as it exploded from the inside, launching pieces of debris in to the sky and surrounding area. The film only got to ran half a minute before Gavin burst in and locked it out, with the soul aim to track where the signals had been transmitted from, the rest of the team stayed stood in place, their faces white as marble.

“Lad we need to move now,” Gavin said, his voice shattering the silence that surround him and drawing everyone attention as his gaze met Ryan’s, “I’ve got a lock of the source for now,”.

With a stiff nod everyone began to move again, teams rushing to quickly get authorities off the case of the exploded building until they could get their own people in to run clean up.

\-------

It didn’t take long for everyone to pull on a quick set of clothing and grab an array of weapons; piling in to a custom black van Gavin worked on the locking in a more secure signal. The way point was several miles away, still located in the west but still a short way away from the base and just outside of Geoff’s territory.

Ryan had been forced in to the back of the van with Gavin, Michael, and Ray while Jack insisted on driving with Geoff with beside him.

“Next right Jack, should be there,” Gavin called from the back. No one questioned him, this was his job.  
Better than any tracker in the CIA, FBI, or Secret Service, Gavin had made himself known to the people he wanted to know him and hide from those that he didn’t want to know him. After leaving England he’d practically disappeared from the planet, but learning to hide had been a skill he’d refined over the years and many teams had taken him in to consideration and later their payroll if he made himself visible to them.

So far Geoff had been the only one to find Gavin without the lad making himself known but Geoff’s equipment was the best of the best and no one breathed in Achievement City without him knowing about it.

This equipment just made Gavin a better weapon, and so when they pulled up outside the derelict lot with just half a house stuck to it’s dying earth nobody asked questions. If Gavin said the signal was coming from here, then the signal was here but from the looks of it who ever had transmitted the signal was long gone.

Still the team entered with caution, Gavin closed the laptop and followed the others out of the van with the pistol that Michael had loaded and given him.

“Ryan, Gav, Ray, you guys head round the back we’ll check the front before we go in,” Geoff order. The guys nodded splitting quickly and making sure the area was clear before entering from their sides.

The house was more of a shack, half open to the elements with rotting floor boards and creaking beams that seemed to barely supported the sagged roof. In the centre of the room however sat a table with two chairs, a large bulk monitor sat facing one side with a keyboard and mouse attached to it and Gavin quick sat down, bypassing the login screen to get straight to the files and links.

As Gavin began to click through the files he became aware of a low beep coming from the back of the computer.

“Hey Michael,” he called, trying to stop his voice from shaking and praying that his instinct was wrong.

“Yeah Gav?” Michael asked, not turning from where he was staring out over the dead earth.

“Could you just take the back off the computer and tell me what you see,” Gavin had frozen his fingers hovering over the keys as Michael moved around the back of the computer and lifted the back panel off.

“Oh shit,” he breathed. Inside was a large bomb, fitted in and around various mother boards it was a work of pure psychotic genius, “Ryan give me your knife,” Michael murmured keeping his eyes on the bomb and holding his hand out as Ryan walked around to look at the weapon before them, handing over his pocket knife without a question and trusting in Michael's ability and knowledge of bombs.

Michael cut the first wire pausing the clock but causing the computer to let out a loud screech, the screen flashing red before settling on a picture of the person the grey tabby cat mask, red text sat atop it, ‘ _Thought it’d be that easy?_ ’ as the picture disappeared the bomb started to recount, files filling Gavin’s screen with instructions and codes.

“We gotta work together Michael,” Gavin’s voice shook as he read over the first lot of text. It was badly written with spelling mistakes and a severe lack of grammar but in the end Gavin realised it was rules of the ‘game’.

While Michael defused the bomb Gavin would be doing other tasks, however there were points ‘These will be made clear for you children’ it read, where the lads would have to wait for the other to complete the task before they could continue.

With just four minutes and twenty-six seconds on the clock the pair began their tasks. Some were simple tasks with Gavin giving Michael a pattern for cutting the wires, while other parts involved Gavin inputting code to turn off areas of motherboard so Michael could remove it.

“Holy shit this thing doesn’t seem to fucking stop!” Michael yelled as he unscrewed the third lot of panelling. Gavin ignored him and focused on his tasks, trying to give Michael clear instructions and keep his own cool was difficult enough without taking notice of Michael’s yelling and the quickly clicking down timer in the top right of his screen.

“Just stay with it Michael, last lot of wires what you got?” he asked, his voice strained and fingers shaking as Michael wiped a hand down his face and focused on the new set of wires before him.

“Got A through F and 1 through 6. Two black, one green, one orange, one red, one yellow,” Michael listed, “A6-yellow, B4-orange, C3-red, D1-black, E2-black, F5-green,” Michael kept talking hoping the extra information would help Gavin search through the information he’d been given.

Gavin searched over the information, the two black wires were already dead so it’d be useless to cut those, ‘ _Black is dead and dying but Red, Orange, Green, Yellow still live. Who connects the blacks?_ ’ Gavin stared at the words, completely stumped by the riddle before him. 

“ _How can something be dead and dying?_ ” he thought to himself then it hit him, the wires were them. The rival liked numbers, they were already counting down with the bodies as they attacked each business.

That meant the first black would be Ray and the second Ryan, “ _But why would they be D and E?_ ”

‘ _ **...it was just Geoff, Jack and me at first, then… somewhere down the line we met Ray… thought Geoff had stopped recruiting after Ryan turned up at our door...**_ ’ The night that Gavin had spent discussing the teams past came barreling back in to his head, the letters were when they’d joined the crew.

“ _Ray and Ryan were four and five! So whose connected to them?_ ” Gavin was scabbling now, did it mean how were they connected? How they became part of the crew? If that was case then Ryan wouldn’t have a wire to cut since he just showed up. But who connected them? Who kept them in the crew?

“Thirty seconds Gav,” Michael broke through his mental babbling.

“ _Ray?.. Ray joined after Michael! And Ryan? Ryan just showed, up he came for Turney? And then…_ ”

“Cut the red wire then the green, that order,” Gavin order.

Michael took a deep breath slicing through the wires with his eyes on the clock. As it beeped to a stop with just ten seconds remaining.

‘ _Well Done Lads. See You Soon – M_ ’ Gavin stared at the screen as the red writing shifted in front of the the picture of a house. A house half open to elements was a sagging roof and black van sat outside. Just inside of the house’s shell you could make out the bodies of four people stood around a table one sat on one side with another on the other side their fingers tangling in their hair out of frustration.

Swallowing the bile in his throat Gavin stood, his legs shaky as he walked out the side of the house where the picture had been taken from. There was nothing, just a few trees that stuck over the fence of the next lot, but the late afternoon sun shone through them happily as he stared.

After fitting his own sticky bomb to the computer and device Michael and the rest of the team followed out after Gavin. They’d looked at the picture until it went black, but didn’t dare to dwell on it, steering Gavin back toward the van they climbed in and headed back to the base after a discussion that it was safer than the apartments.

“We have more people, more security and we’re all together there,” Jack put forward. No one argued, they didn’t doubt that even if they did go back to the apartments they wouldn’t leave Geoff’s apartment, at least if they were in the base already they wouldn’t end up too scared to travel there and back.

The final message from ‘ _M_ ’ had shaken Gavin. This was a game to them, who ever it was seemed to have a twisted sense of humor and no moral compass which made for a very unhinged and dangerous human being. Pushing it to the back of his mind he leant heavily against Michael. Michael leant back, enjoying the contact as his head fell on to Gavin’s shoulder not caring when Gavin reached out and took the hand that Ray wasn’t holding in his own.

They needed each other now more than ever, it was slowly showing and M knew it.


	19. Chapter 19

There were months of long silence and sudden actions that came next. Informatin still filtered in slowly and for now M’s main focus seemed to be crushing Ray and Ryan through their extra bases and in turn the team could only watch as they and Geoff fell in to an insanity that no one seemed able to cure.

It was hard to keep spirits up in the team. They resorted to moving in to the base almost full time, living out of the top two floors that were set up for personal living accommodation, they’d sent unmarked mercenaries back to apartments one by one to retrieve various items, these included clothing, cars, weapons, tech, prototypes, anything that could be traced back to them was brought and slowly filtered through the base.

While each of the guys had separate beds they preferred to sleep together, either in pairs or threes or all of them (at one point they managed to get everyone snuggled in to a double bed and while it had been fun the gents were eventually pushed out due to them giving off too much heat) if they all decided to cuddle together they usually chose the larger bed where they had enough room to move. 

As a result, the team seemed to gather and move around each other easier. They still had their pairs but it would be lie to say that Gavin hadn’t grown closer to all of the others, often cuddling against Michael’s side when they weren’t getting anywhere with information or helping to comfort Ray when another of his lots was hit. Michael’s jealousy had taken a severe backseat with all the events so walking in on Ray and Gavin napping barely made him falter anymore and more often than not he’d simply curl in beside them.

Michael’s jealousy had also taken a backseat because of his own actions.

After certain hits or days where nothing seemed to be moving he’d get frustrated and attempt to reside to the gym or find Lindsay, but Geoff’s orders kept her firmly at her desk from 8am till 10pm. Gavin had noticed this over the weeks, Michael’s body language intriguing him to the point that he’d gone after Michael one day and followed him to the gym where he found himself almost instantly pressed against a wall with Michael’s lips against his own. Begs of please had fluttered against his skin melting every thought from Gavin’s head as he kissed back, meeting the lad’s need with his own as their bodies pressed together.

Hours later and Gavin had almost regretted it, except that every time he glanced over at Michael and spotted the purple bruising just beneath his collar he was filled with a joy that things could be at least semi-normal if at little desperate even with everything going to shit around them.

It seemed to become a common thing especially on the slow days. Weeks could go by with nothing at points, and Gavin’s logical was that the pent up energy they were getting from not pulling jobs had to be let out in some form, and it became a common thing for a couple or more to disappear for a few hours and come back with a burst of new energy. Once Geoff caught on to the acts he realised he didn’t care anymore, going as far as encouraging Jack to leave his post even if it was just for a sloppy make out session and rushed handjob, because in reality the work they weren’t getting done while fucking was about the same amount as if they’d been sat at their desks.

But the days something did happen it was all hands to deck.

M seemed to have stopped with her 'warning' game, focusing purely on grinding the teams to dust by destroying outposts and certain hideouts, cutting down Ray’s drug ring and taking out every mercenary post that Ryan had built up and trained.

Each hit was always followed by a video, similar to that that had followed their second attack. Handheld with bodies slung, collapsed and sprawled across rooms with blood pools and spray coating the floors and walls; a banner or message somewhere amongst the gore. The animal masks seemed to make more of appearance in the videos from Ryan’s lots than that of Ray’s, almost as though a competition in freaky ass masks was being ran between them secretly, but over all the messages were the most disturbing things.

‘ _These ones put up a fight – M_ ’, ‘ _You call these guys drug dealers? – M_ ’, ‘ _Thought you trained these people? – M_ ’, ‘ _Not playing? Where’s your fight gone? – M_ ’, ‘ _Give up yet? – M __’ ‘ _Thought not – M_ ’._

Each message was made to taunt and irritate both the guys and Geoff. That paired with Geoff’s paranoia about there being a mole, or how M kept finding the locations and information was almost enough to drive Geoff to the edge.

He ran the team ragged. Everyone worked fifteen hour days at a minimum. Cameras were under constant surveillance with a rotor of three people every five hours to make sure nothing was missed. Gavin’s job was simple in a sense that he became the IT security and management, on slow days he spent most time just running routine checks but on the days of hits it was down to him to trace signals and get them out to teams who had been set up to track them down.

It felt wrong to the main six that they were sending others to do the dirty work, especially when they knew the kind of game that they had the potential of being met with. Most of the time the trail didn’t leave to anything, just a half dead computer that had obviously just been used as a go between, but every so often M left them a new game, bombs and codes and buttons and wires.

Some of the games were pegged with came more along the complexity of that which Gavin and Michael had faced the first time, other times they seemed to just be sick twists on basic kid games like not letting the hoop touch the wire as you guided it around a maze, or literal operation where a mauled body would have the bomb implanted in it somewhere, their numbers would dwindle every so often that Geoff called in back up through Burnie and Matt.  
They called in contacts from around the world, people that had been on the books for years and could be trusted to take on any task once.

“Do think they’ll move on to someone else eventually?” Gavin asked one evening as he lay in bed with Jack using the older man’s chest as a pillow while Jack’s arm curled around his bare shoulder and back, running patterns across the skin.

Jack sighed shifting slightly beneath Gavin as he thought.

“I don’t know, I hope so, don’t know how much more Ryan and Ray can take,” he said honestly. As it was Geoff and Ryan were still down stairs in the base, the only ones there after another hit on one of the smallest outposts that Ryan had had on the south coast.  
They’d been the newer guys and Ryan had moved them out there so they could hopefully be safe for a little longer. But M didn’t seem to have a pattern with how she was picking where to hit, one day they’d been down in the south, another day they’d get information about some stuff that had been going on in the neighbouring city, another hit at the dock’s Ray used in the east, and then actively that was barely a few blocks away from the main base.

“I think it’s starting to get to every one, don’t know how Michael hasn’t broken anything yet,” Gavin joked, knowing the exact answer to his own thought as he felt Jack brush over some of the bruising he knew Michael had left along his shoulders and upper back.

“Well you seem to be helping Michael fine with aspect,” Jack murmured, pressing against one of the older bruises and watching it blanch before returning the dying yellow and green, “how are you and Ryan doing?”

“We’re okay, kinda distant but thats understandable he’s got a lot on his plate,” Gavin murmured.

“He okay with you and Michael?” Jack asked.

Gavin didn’t know how to answer, he and Ryan hadn’t really spoken about it in too many words. It was obvious that he knew, the bruises weren’t exactly hard to see once Ryan stripped him off. Whether he was alright was a completely different point however, but Ryan still went off with Meg and Ashley or whoever else seemed to take his fancy that wasn’t Gavin.

“Gonna guess he is, but he can’t really say anything when he’s got Meg and Ashley marking him up every other slow day,” Jack chuckled at that, nodding slight as he thought over the amount of times he’d seen Ryan disappear with the two girls only to come back with fresh bites and lipstick stains that he’d missed on his neck.

Gavin was about to ask how he and Geoff were doing when he and Ryan stumbled through the door, Geoff barely kicking his shoes and jeans off before climbing in beside Jack and planting a soft kiss on both Jack and Gavin’s lips. It had become a normal thing now and Gavin didn’t think about it twice even as Ryan climbed in to the already too small bed behind him and kissed slowly up his neck to his ear until Gavin twisted around to face him, tangling his fingers in Ryan’s hair and kissing him deeply.

“You okay?” he murmured, the moment feeling private despite Jack being pressed against Gavin's back and Geoff just beyond him as he kept their faces close enough that he could feel Ryan’s breath shift as he nodded.

“I will, be just tired for now,” he replied kissing Gavin’s forehead before reaching over and doing the same with Jack and Geoff.

While the bed was small and squished they’d become accustom to it and quickly found comfort in the fact that they couldn’t move without touching at least two people at any time. The heat could get too much but if that ever happen Gavin just ended up lay either on top of someone or twisted over them enough to get to an edge.

\-------

Gavin woke with a start in the early hours of the morning shaking of the remnants of a nightmare he couldn’t quite remember, despite having them regularly of farm animals and masks, decapitated heads and round after round of gun fire and the scrape of knives on bone.

He rolled slightly, finding himself barely clutched at the edge of the double bed with Ryan a few inches from his back, the gents arm beneath his head from where it had been hugging him close.

“ _Maybe that’s why I thought I was choking,_ ” he joked to himself rolling from beneath the duvet and pulling his sweat soaked shorts from his legs.

Yellow light that you couldn’t escape in the centre of the city still seeped through the window panes, casting a faint glow over the laminate that covered the living areas in contrast to the white tile that covered the base floors. Below him he could hear the buzz of machines that were never allowed to sleep, their eerie blacked out faces still casting a slight light through the otherwise empty base while others flickered with grainy camera shots of Achievement City.

Gavin followed the buzz, grabbing one of Jack’s large t-shirts and pulling it over his head.

It wasn’t uncommon for him to not sleep in the past and he’d often found refuge in front of a computer screen. To most of his past colleges they never saw him away from the tech and constantly made jokes about how he was going to be blind as bat before he turned thirty.  
It was true that his eyes ached and burned after hours upon hours of staring at the pixels but Gavin found some odd comfort in the glow of a monitor and the background noise as towers buzzed and clicked.

Padding in to the base he was met with the usual flicker of security cameras surrounding Achievement City, their grainy black and white faces staring back at him as he walked toward his seat with a Red Bull in hand. Only thing that was different now was that there was someone sat in front of another set of screens, their shoulders hunched as they typed; face close to screen almost as though she could lean straight through it.

“Couldn’t sleep?” Gavin asked, staring at the security footage that was a few feet behind her.

Meg jumped, spinning her chair around and almost falling out of it in the process.

“Jesus Christ Gav, you almost gave me a heart attack,” she gasped clutching her chest. Gavin grinned at her and shrugged.

“Kinda difficult to have a heart attack when you’re immortal,” he reminded. Meg narrowed her eyes at him, sticking out her tongue before turning back to her work.

“You know what I meant smart arse,” she muttered, placing her glasses back on her nose as she starred over the pages of data, “what are you even doing up? The gents push you out the bed?” she asked. Gavin laughed once wandering over to where Meg was sitting and standing behind her.

“No, just woke up, nightmares, also those three can get way to warm to share a bed with at times,” he admitted leaning on the back of Meg’s chair while she worked.

He’d never actually taken a moment to completely look at the woman he spent so much time working beside and who his boyfriend messed about with on several occasions, but in honesty Gavin found that he couldn’t blame Ryan she really was beautiful.

Immortality suited her, even now as she was; hair back in messy pony tail, dressed in a large jumper that covered most of her thighs and tempted the fact that she was only wearing panties underneath Gavin could imagine how she looked back in the 60s.  
Hair done nice in thick waves, held back by a simple band. Make up natural but with killer red lips as she strutted about and ruled the streets, mini skirts and platform boots with some loud blouse covering her impressive cleavage. The others running along beside her as they pulled off another robbery and piled, laughing in to a waiting car.

Gavin would have loved to have been a part of her world then.

“You know Gav, that analysing gaze doesn’t half make me want to jump you,” Meg said, her voice husky and lustful as she peered over her shoulder at him.

Gavin felt his cheeks burn red, his eyes gliding down to where the jumper had tightened across her breasts.

“Gavin, there’s no shame in wanting to take me for a ride yourself, Ryan’s done it enough. Aren’t just a little curious as to find out what the big deal is?” Meg was smirking now; the signature grin that spread across her lips the moment she knew she had someone in her grasps.

Turning completely in her chair she knelt up so that she was just an inch or so away from Gavin’s face as his eyes darted between hers and her mouth. Meg leant forward slowly; a hesitant kiss at first that quickly grew as Gavin reached up to cup the back of her neck, his fingers twining in the hair at the nape of her neck and pulling her closer.

Meg gripped at Gavin’s shoulders, pushing her thighs together as she felt a need grow deep inside her. It felt like months since she’d had a good fuck, Ryan had been too preoccupied with work or too tired to even think about fucking and from the way Gavin was tugging at her hair and skimming his teeth across her lip it was clear that he’d been feeling the neglect as well.

Pushing Gavin back slightly Meg slid off the chair and took Gavin’s hand tugging him to the B-Team quarters and the bedroom she’d been assigned for that evening. Gavin didn’t argue, keeping himself close to Meg’s back and peppering her neck with kisses and bites as she pulled him along until she locked the bedroom door and he had her pressed against it.

Gavin wasn’t used to having to much control. With Ryan and Michael he was always the submissive, with Ray it alternated and with Jack and Geoff… well they were mainly just a lazy make out session or a cuddle, maybe a handjob or two if they were really desperate. But here and now Meg was giving him full control, she let him lead and took everything he gave her.

A tug of her hair and her head would fall back easily, her smooth neck on display and ready to be marked. A slight tug at the jumper and off it came, fluttering to the floor and revealing the smooth soft flesh of her breasts beneath.  
Gavin couldn’t help the small groan the fell from his lips as he manoeuvred down, palming at one breast and tweaking the nipple while he suckled on the other, licking over the nipple and feeling it grow harder in his mouth and beneath his hand.

Meg moaned, her hips bucking slightly as her fingers carded through his hair in encouragement. But Gavin had other ideas as he picked her up around the thighs, her chest still in his face as he carried her over to the bed as laid her out standing at the foot of the bed so he could get a good look at her.

“Like what you see?” Meg asked breathlessly as she let her fingers trace patterns over her own skin, running up over her breast to tweak at the nipple slightly, her panties notably damp.

Gavin didn’t answer except for leaning over her again, kissing her deeply and placing her hands above her head as Meg grinded up against his boxers and the straining erection that they covered.

He moved then, kissing down her neck, her collar bone, between her breast and over her stomach until her reached her hips, his thumbs pressing against the dints at the front and making her back arch away from the bed.

The others, they’d had their time, they’d played their games. Now it was Gavin’s turn to play.

And play he did, teasing Meg’s panties off before slowly kissing his way back up from her ankle, nipping and biting as he got closer to her inner thigh and could feel her muscles shake with anticipation.

Leaning his head against one of her thighs he let one hand creep down, brushing over the thin dusting of pubic hair to tease at her clit, never touching it directly except for the odd swipe as he circled it.

When he could resist anymore her leant in close, letting his breath ghost over her pussy as she tried to arch toward him, one hand moving down to try and grab at his hair and urge him on.

“Hands back above you or I’ll not let you play,” he warned, his mouth at the joint between her thigh and her cunt. Meg whined, impatient but placed her hand back above her head joining it with the other and knotting it in the sheets.

As a reward Gavin finally licked up her slit, his tongue adding to the wetness that was already there as he repeated the action. His thumb left her clit to grip her thighs instead as Gavin began to flick his tongue back and forth over the bundle of nerves. Meg rolled against him, seeking more than just a stimulus and Gavin happily gave in, pressing one then two fingers inside of her within quick succession as he searched for her G-spot.

It had been a while since he’d been with a woman but he soon picked it, finding the sweet spot inside of her and rubbing against it with little mercy while he lapped and sucked at her clit, making her moan loudly.

He doubled his efforts then, knowing she had to be close as he added another finger, feeling her stretch around them. She groaned, hands balling in to fists beneath the sheets as Gavin reached up to play with one of her breasts, pinching the nipple and rolling it between his fingers, Meg couldn’t fight anymore.

“Oh my God, right there, fuck Gavin right there… oh, shit I’m gonna…” Meg broke of off in a moan as Gavin pumped his fingers hard inside of her.

“Go one then Meg, cum for me, come on,” he growled, replacing his tongue with that hand that had been pinching her breast; biting down on her thigh and making her cry out as she was pushed over the edge. Gavin continued to rub across her clit and pump her through her orgasm, watching as her back arched from the mattress and arms flew down to clutch the sheets either side of her.

He slowed as she came down from her high, slipping off his boxers and t-shirt as he crawled beside her, kissing softly at her chest, neck and jaw as her eyes focused on him again. Reaching up she passed her fingers through Gavin’s hair pulling his mouth to hers for a moment before Gavin pulled away a devilish look in his eye as he shifted position slightly.

“Ready for round two?” he grinned, pressing the head of his penis against her still throbbing folds. With a grin of her own, Meg nodded spreading her legs wider and Gavin pushed in.

The pair groaned as they moved, Gavin pressing to the hilt and giving Meg a moment to adjust before he pulled back out and pressed in again. They kept up this pace, slow and steady, just kissing each other as Gavin thrust slowly, barely pulling out before pushing back in.

But Meg grew impatient and with little effort pushed the lad on to his back. She sat up then, her hands braced on his chest while her purple hair surrounded her, the majority having come loose from the pony tail she’d been wearing.

Gavin stared up at her, tracing up her arm and cupping her cheek, pulling her down to kiss him.

“Absolutely gorgeous,” he mumbled.

“You won’t just think I’m gorgeous when I’m done with you Mr Free,” Meg smirked back, her voice playful as she rolled her hips and watched as Gavin’s mouth fell open in a silent moan.

From there Meg took control, riding Gavin and playing with herself until Gavin was a begging, moaning mess beneath her.

“Please Meg… Oh fuck, I’m so close,” he groaned, clutching at her hips but allowing her to stay at the perfect angle and pace so that she’d finish along side him.

“Almost there,” Meg gasped, rubbing her fingers back and forth over her clit as she bounced, “Ohh, oh, oh fu…” Meg moaned clenching around Gavin’s dick and pushing him over the edge as she continued to move and work herself to a complete finish.

When they were finished, they lay together, controlling their breathing until it occurred to Gavin that they’d forgotten about one very important thing.

“We didn’t use a condom,” he panicked, attempting to sit up only to have Meg push him back down with a short, tired laugh.

“It doesn’t matter Gav, can’t get pregnant when your body can’t change, immortals remember,” she taunted tapping lightly at Gavin’s chest as she listened to his heart rate return to normal.

After a couple minutes of comfortable silence she asked, “So as good as you expected?”

She peered up at Gavin, letting her fingers trace idely through his chest hair.

Gavin grinned, looking down at her, “Was alright,” he joked, quickly changing his answer when he saw the slight offence cloud her face, “what I mean is, it was definitely worth the wait, and I can definitely see why Ryan is so very fond of making you moan, it really is very attractive.”

Meg smirked up at him, ignoring the heat that filled her cheeks as she kissed him lightly and settled back against his chest.

Too soon, Meg’s alarm clock beside them was beeping in to life. 7:30am they had to be back at work within half an hour and neither of them had moved and inch.

Eventually they moved, Gavin grabbing his clothes and retreating back upstairs to shower.  
If his guess was right only Ray and Ryan would be up so far and getting dressed, but Michael and Jack wouldn’t be far behind so Gavin knew he would have to worry if he wanted to shower without the others getting suspicious.

Although his sneakiness became moot as soon as everyone was downstairs and could see the fresh bruises surrounding Meg’s neck and collar every time she leant over someone or stretched her head back. Gavin tried to ignore it, tried to ignore every flashback of a few hours ago, tried to ignore that glances that Meg was getting from everyone and how much it was starting to ignore him, but most of all he tried to ignore Ryan and the knowing looking that passed between himself and Meg.

\-------

Ryan knew, of course he knew, he’d known as soon as Gavin made up the excuse that he’d been working early because he’d woken up to an empty bed (aside from Jack and Geoff) and gone in search of Gavin only to find Meg knelt up on a chair with Gavin in front of her as they kissed.

He’d left them to it, it wasn’t his place; he’d been neglecting the both of them so it was fair that they’d taken the matter in to their own hands quite literally. He didn’t have a need or right to feel jealous of them getting close while he was pinned to the side-lines with the constant threat of another attack on his dwindling mercenary squads. The only thing that hurt was that Gavin had felt the need to tell a quick lie just to try and get back to work faster.

Looking back on it though none of them had really talked about the growing relations between everyone. Ryan knew that Gavin had been fucking around with Michael and Ray, hell he wasn’t even surprised in knowing that Gav had fooled about with Jack and Geoff, it seemed natural.

So why was he feeling so concerned for Gavin now that he’d let himself get in to something with Meg?

Ryan shook his head roughly, pushing his hands through his hair and worked on concentrating on the plans beneath him. He’d already lost too many men; the empire couldn’t really afford to lose anymore outposts and merc bases, nor could they risk any more potential attention from the authorities and news teams (especially when news broadcasts were starting to sniff about and get the stories all wrong).

It was at the point where there’d been that many attacks that both Ryan and Ray had the task of trying to work out where could be next. It was hard, whoever was hitting their resources seemed to have no pattern and in a sick way they were proving themselves the better criminal.

‘ _Having a pattern makes you predictable. Don’t have a pattern, don’t get caught._ '

It was an ideology that Ryan had lived his life by back in his solo days. He didn’t stay in the same place too long, only took contracts of people he didn’t know, attacked on impulse rather than planning stuff out, threw in a couple random hits when he felt that he’d done the same thing for too long.  
It was one of the reasons he’d got himself labelled so many names since most crimes never fitted what others had been, and he’d worn them all proudly.

Of course most of that had changed when he went in search of Geoff. He’d been bored and maybe a little scared, the Ramsey empire growing meant that Ryan had been left with a shrinking hunting ground. He could barely move without running in to or bypassing someone that ran within Ramsey’s circles, so he’d made a pass at it, if he couldn’t beat them he was going to join them.

After proving his own immortality Geoff couldn’t really say no to his offer and life had become easy. His past ideology became just a fragment of his former lives. He’d lived in Achievement City for too long to remember now, he’d settled, had contacts that he knew and could call upon, went along with plans that had been set out before, fucked and lived like he didn’t have another care in the world because now he was in.

This was the easy life, or at least it had been.

Ryan couldn’t help but look at the nature of this rival and imagine it as himself. Could this have been him if he hadn’t taken the easy road and joined the growing empire? Or would he still be running? Would he have potentially have killed one of the crew, people he now loved and cared about? Or would he have just moved out to another city, started again, got a new name, a new reputation?

Ryan didn’t know anymore as he rubbed at his eyes. The words just weren’t making sense anymore, he couldn’t pick anything from them and it seemed no one else could either.  
As he looked around he saw Ray staring at his own paper very much that same way he had, looking but not really seeing or comprehending what it was say. Michael was trying to stay busy, keeping track or ordinance lots and delivers that were set to come in or be dropped at locations.

“ _He’s probably be heading out soon,_ ” Ryan thought watching the lad click through maps and lists, scribbling stuff in to the note pad beside him, “ _maybe I can convince Geoff to let me go with him._ ”

Ryan was just about to stand and ask Michael when he was leaving when Geoff came busting through the doors drawing everyone’s attention as he started yelling.

“Right fuckers, I know I’ve been tough on you and know you probably all hate me with the amount of pointless work y’all have been doing. So fuck it we’re having a break. Anyone that isn’t B-Team or main crew, you get today off, everyone else that is in those teams get your ass to conference room G with in the next twenty minutes. Lindsay, bring the bank job,” and with that he turned back around and strode from the room leaving everyone in a stunned silence as the information sank in.

A couple beats later and everyone was packing away all notes and pictures and documentation before grabbing their bags and practically running for the doors. In the end, Jack, Ryan, Michael, Ray, Gavin, Kdin, Caleb, and Lindsay were the only people left in the base, slowly packing away their work and wondering what the hell Geoff had in store.


	20. Chapter 20

What Geoff was planning had been back in the works before the rival had even first come on to the scene. Lindsay had pitched the idea to him back a few months before Gavin had joined but with a backlog of plans and routine to work through it had been pushed further and further back.

Now with everyone tired and needing a break from base work Geoff thought it was a good time to get some energy back in to his team. Pinning Lindsay at the front of the room the other settled around, their faces worn out and eyes tired as they watched her set up quickly and reread over the plans she’d altered a few times over.

Taking a deep breath, she began, she’d only ever been over this plan with Geoff and Jack and they’d thought it good enough to do back in the day when there was less of them. Now it was just about convincing everyone else, who were already tired and yet equally restless and itching to get back on the streets and causing havoc.

“Alright dickwads, this ones an old one so I’ve had to revise it a little, obviously shits getting real hot right now, we’ve got rivals running us about left, right and centre and we’ve all been stuck in here for god knows how long. So fuck it, for this heist, I’m thinking that we need to take some gold.”

Everyone seemed to perk up at that, the dullness that had been filling everyone’s eyes shifted slightly and the excitement that came with a coming heist seemed to relight them. Ryan pushed himself off the wall stretching out his muscles as adrenaline began to seep back through his veins as he watched the three lads exchange excited looks with one another.

“So gold is pretty flashey, we’re gonna look like assholes unless were walking around with it on our necks, so what better way to transport it than in a port-a-potty,” Lindsay grinned letting the small chuckles and comment die back down before she continued.

She was lucky that there was always construction going on within Achievement City, usually down to Fake AH since they had a habit of blowing stuff up, and that meant that they had a surplus of construction site port-a-potties to choose from and she quickly marked where their potty was.

“So fourteen stories up, at the top of this construction site, Ryan you’re gonna be in charge of making sure that port-a-potty goes off that roof, you are the Force Pusher, you’re going to push it off the building in to the bed of the truck down below that will be piloted by Michael,” Lindsay said, Michael twisting to grin at Ryan with a nod.

“So I’m force pushing it on to Michael, does that make you the power bottom this time?” Ryan asked, Michael thought for a second.

“No you’re still generating the power I’m just the bottom, I’m not generating the power but I’m capable of receiving an enormous amount of power, and that’s what I’m gonna be doing, I’m gonna be receiving your power Ry Bread,” Michael grinned, his mind automatically thinking back to how long it had been since he and Ryan had fucked, Ryan nodded the dark look in his eyes revealing that he too was thinking to same thing as Michael.

"Yeah he's Crap Catcher in this, he's going to be a the bottom ready to catch the port-a-potty in the bed of his truck," Lindsay explained, the pair nodding in agreement.

“So obviously those two are gonna be dressed as construction workers, and that just those two at the construction site, correct?” Geoff asked a chorus of agreements following his statement about dressing up. Lindsay nodded,

“Yeah they’re gonna be chilling at the construction site, once the pottys in the truck Ryan is riding with Michael and the potty will be delivered to this bank, Palomino Creek, which we should all be very familiar with thanks to Michael’s last heist.”

“Oh yeah isn’t that where we had our last stand?” Ray asked, turning in his chair too look at Ryan who was busy shaking his head at Michael who could barely see past his stupid grin.

“Well no we made it around the corner, we died in a parking lot Ray,” he clarified causing the others to laugh until Lindsay got their attention back to her and the current heist.

So far they’d only covered Michael and Ryan’s positions, she still had the other’s get to through including the fact that Geoff, Ray and herself would be posing as bank tellers, blending in with two buses waiting in the alleyways until the port-a-potty arrived on scene and they formed a V in front of the truck to protect it while the gold was run from the bank vaults to the potty.

“Ray your Streaker, Geoff you’re Boom-Boom, I’m Runs and Guns,” Lindsay finished up, Geoff seeming pleased with her progress so far and Ray more than a little disheartened over the fact that she wouldn’t let his codename be Solider Boy Teller.

“Sounds good. What am I doing?!” Gavin yelled, over the laughs of his team mates, slightly upset that he hadn’t been given a codename or job yet. As far as he could tell he wasn’t even part of the job and would currently be left working at the base with Jack, who had already counted himself out of this job in order to keep a few things running around the base, or worse get stuck with Kdin and Celeb as pick up duty for anyone that went down during the heist.

“Hold on, yeah, while this is happening Gavin is waiting back here with a cargobob,” Lindsay said, she’d had to figure out how to fit Gavin in to the plan with in the short amount of time, she just hoped he could fly since he was now taking Jack’s place.

“So it sounds like I’m doing nothing until we get to the bank,” Gavin scoffed, “I might as well get a good angle at the construction sight… King of Alignment ‘cause I’ll be able to see the bog and the truck and get a good angle on the poo splash,” he decided, Lindsay was fine with that when she thought about it. It would save them time trying to get the guys to line themselves up and meant that Gavin was already in the air in case they needed any form of cover fire, she’d throw one of the mercenaries they had left in with him or worse case scenario she’d call in a ‘disposable’.

Disposables weren’t used often, they were people that were completely off grid, no records, no relatives, nothing. Geoff mainly had them on call for when things got really nasty and he needed forces building up fast, otherwise they could be use to test the waters with new dealers and several had been used as burn bodies when the guys needed to disappear for a while.

“So the one heist we don’t have Jack in we’re letting Gavin fly,” Ryan questioned, Gavin turning to frown at him.

“It actually makes sense sort of, we’ve seen from his past records in other groups that he was one of the only people to successfully land a chopper at the very top of Mount Lingus,” Michael spoke up, leaning forward slightly to catch Geoff’s gaze who nodded.

It was true that when they’d been tracking Gavin and looking through his various skills that one group he’d been with had always ran tasks for the team, not in the way that Geoff did since they could die but in a similar way, and Gavin had indeed been the only one to land and push off from the highest mountain in Achievement City.

“If your gonna think like that Ryan then how about this,” Geoff spoke up turning his attention to Gavin, “how about you just do better than you ever do, don’t do your best, do Jack’s best.”

Gavin could tell he was joking; playing along to humour Ryan and his worries, even though he had no reason to think that Gavin would be a bad flyer, but even so the idea of trying to be as good if not better than Jack was daunting especially when it came to flying which was by far his greatest skill.

“So thats sorted, the potty is delivered to the front of the bank, the buses are pulled in to the V by Ray and myself. I want Ray and Ryan making heat for us.”

“Dude we’re gonna fuck!” Ray yelled pushing his chair back on to two legs as he laughed.

“Yeah we’ll distract them all with hot gay sex,” Ryan laughed.

Lindsay shook her head at the pair but continued otherwise she’d never finish.

“Michael while that’s going on you’re getting out the truck and running around to meet Gavin in the the cargobob, while me and Geoff start running the money back and forth,”

“Aye Team Nice Dyna-bob!” Gavin laughed, smushing the name, Team Nice Dynamite that they’d come up with a month or some back in to a new form; earning an enthusiastic laugh from Michael.

“Fuck yeah, I’ll spray paint a yellow smiley face on the side of it, we’re gonna look awesome,” Michael agreed.

“So once the money is in the potty and Ray and Ryan are making heat, Geoff, you and I are gonna get the fuck out of there,” Lindsay said, pointing at each person as she mentioned them.

“You know I scouted this bank out a while back and there is a side door we can go through,” Geoff added, using his knowledge of pretty much every building in Achievement City to help them for once.

“Awesome, so we’ll grab an escape vehicle from around there and head out toward the train tracks, once we’ve got on the train and it’s moving we’ll drop a flair so the others can locate us, meanwhile Gavin and Michael…”

“Team Nice Dyan-bob,” Gavin corrected.

“Yeah Team Nice Cargobob, are gonna swoop in grab the potty and take it in to the air to track down the train. Ryan and Ray you guys are still creating heat until they’re out of sight,” the guys nodded trying to keep with the speed that Lindsay was now going in order to stop any of them from butting in, “I suggest one of you places one of your armoured vehicles ready before the kick-off, cause you’re then going to have to lose the cops on you’re way to any airport and get something just big enough for you two, so you can start tracking down the train we’re on,” the pair nodded pointing between each other as they silently argued about who car would have to get blown up. Deciding that Ryan would be the one to sacrifice the vehicle, since he had more armoured cars than he knew what to do with, they continued to listen as Lindsay finished up the plan.

Once everyone was on the train along with the potty, which Gavin would have to drop on their before either he or Michael could board, they’d redirect out toward an area of abandoned track that wasn’t in commercial use anymore but still had the train depo that they could lay low in until Kdin and Celeb could pick them up and either take them bac to a safe house or the base.

“Alright so everyone clear?” Lindsay asked, starting in front of the board that was now scrawled with notes.

“Yeah lets go tear that turd apart,” Michael laughed, standing along with others as they quickly filtered out and headed for the garages and ammunition departments.

It sounded simple, there was no massive set ups, nothing custom was needed except for a couple vehicle calls like the cargobob and the plane or chopper that Ryan and Ray would need to get away in.

They were all piled in to the custom Roosevelt after less than an hour of prep work. They need costumes, the decided cat masks, and a few vehicles likes the buses and Ryan’s armoured car getting in to place before they blew the port-a-potty from the room of the construction site.

First stop was clothes with Geoff, Lindsay and Ray coming out looking classy as fuck in new suits and aviators while Michael, Ryan and Gavin seemed to have missed a memo about shirts. With little time to talk about it other than a few tuts and sighs they all squished back in to the car again and headed for the mask store.  
The usual guy was sat behind his counter, undeterred by the strange combination of people that had just flooded his store since he pretty much paid Geoff in masks and silence in order to keep him protected within the city. With everyone masked up in various cat heads, besides for Gavin who had decided to go with an owl head.

“If I’m the Doose Goose, my mask is matching what I’m doing,” he argued, Lindsay giving up her argument that an owl was nothing like a goose quickly as they ran the route between the construction site and bank before Michael and Ryan were dropped to await the flat bed truck, Gavin was taken to his cargobob location and Geoff dropped at the bank so he could start scoping the place out and blending in while Lindsay and Ray collected the buses and prepared them in the alleys.

As it was the remaining set up went off without a hitch and soon Lindsay, Ray, Geoff were stood waiting around while Michael lined up the truck beneath the port-a-potty while Gavin sat on a roof opposite. It was during this time that Lindsay took a moment to herself, retreating to a back alley about half a block away and switching off her mic and calling the leader of her team.

“Hey, it’s Tuggey, Fake AH are pulling a bank heist, Palomino Creek starts on the Central Creek and my team runs down on West Drive. It’s gonna split in to three teams ,so I don’t know where the other two will go, but we’re all heading for the train, if you want to get yourself or some people in the sky and on cameras so you can watch,” she reeled off quickly, as her Ryan call that he was starting to set the explosives and then they’d be good to go.

**\---**

“Okay, thanks for the heads up, have fun with them,” the other woman replied before hanging up and turning around to bark a couple orders at those around her.

“I want at least one jet in the air, if we can get a chopper up there as well, but I mainly want surveillance being run throughout Central Creek and West Drive and then watch everything within a twenty block radius,” she ordered pacing through the room as people jumped in to action and began to bring up the various security feeds, including Palomino Creek Bank where she could see Geoff and Ray talking quietly in one corner, “I’m looking forward to seeing how my toys play,” she murmured sinking down in a chair that was practically throne like as more and more screens flicked in to life, showing every road and alley from the bank to the construction sight where Ryan had just finished placing explosives.

**\---**

“Okay explosives are set and ready to go, we calling this?” Ryan called in to his mic, listening as static crackled and popped in his ear.

“Yep tellers are in position, ready when you are,” Lindsay called, making her way back in to the building to wait it out.

“Alright ready Crap Catcher? Three… Two… One…” an explosion rocked the top level of the growing skyscraper sending the blue port-a-potty over the side and spinning through the air. Thankfully for the team it was still early and no one had had a chance to use the plastic loo yet meaning the splash that covered Michael’s truck as it hit was nothing but a bit of remaining water from the bowl.

“Direct hit! Woo Hoo!” Gavin yelled down the ear piece making it ring as he jumped about on his rooftop and shooting a Ryan a thumbs up before watching the gent jump himself and parachute down on to the truck.

“Alright, potty is in transit, Doose Goose you following?” Michael called as Ryan climbed in next to him and he pulled out on to the road.

“Following you now boy, good luck down there,” Gavin replied hovering a block or so in front of Michael as he began the slow drive up toward the bank knowing that if he went too fast he and Ryan would have to climb out to pull the potty back in to the truck bed.

“Alright boys let us know when you’re a block away and we’ll head out to get the buses set up, Geoff you good to start getting people down or out and planting explosives?” Lindsay said quietly in to her earpiece as she stood outside a few feet from her bus with Ray doing the same while Geoff had been left inside.

“Yeah, I got it,” Geoff replied, his voice quiet as he walked around the balcony of the building, figuring out the best way to evacuate the place without a large amount of civilian casualties.

“Alright we’re just cresting the hill,” Michael announced watching as Lindsay and Ray’s buses appeared in front on him, sat ready on the sidewalk as he began to reverse in front of the doors, “Right we’re wedged right against the door.” With that the buses pulled together, their frames clashing in a screech of metal.

“Right everyone masks on, Boom Boom it’s time to blow it,” Lindsay announced hiding around one wall as Geoff set the last explosive and took cover, thankful that the only people he’d had to take care of by locking them in a store cupboard was a couple tellers and security guys.

The explosion rattled through the building, shaking the flooring and ripping through walls as dust poured from the door of the vault and it swung open slightly. Geoff wasted no time in running in and filing the bags with gold bars, he could already hear Ryan and Ray’s gun fire on the street above him as Lindsay rushed in and grabbed the first two filled bags, throwing her load of bags towards him.

“Alright first lot of money has been loaded in, I can see the guys running! Fuck we’ve got a lot of sirens up here!” Gavin relayed to the team as more explosion rattled through the streets and cut of sirens as they were replaced with screams.

“We’ve got the last two bags,” Geoff said, as he made for the stairs. The gold laded bags hung heavy on his shoulders and made climbing the steps at speed a difficult task but soon the explosions were clear, dust, and yelling pouring through the open door as Lindsay held her hands out for the bags ready to throw them in to the potty.

“Alright lobby’s clear all cats out of the building!” Lindsay yelled, locking the port-a-potty and running after Geoff as he headed for the side door where they’d make their escape and took of their masks. As Gavin landed on the road Ryan set about moving the bus, allowing Michael to pull the truck forward and climb in to the co-pilot’s seat.

“Alright it's clear, it’s clear, I’m climbing in the chopper now,” Michael yelled scrambling to find the other headset beneath his seat as Gavin pulled up and manoeuvred to grab the potty.

“Time to call our distraction in,” Ryan warned, running for the armoured car he’d planted with Ray behind him, letting take the drivers seat as he called in his back up weapon.

“Doose Goose is in the air, get out of there team,” Lindsay yelled still running behind Geoff in search of a car

“Air strikes coming in!” Ryan warned, the tires of his car screeching as Ray span them around and jetted toward the location of Ryan’s aircraft.

“Air strike?” Gavin questioned, his voice breaking in surprise as he turned to stare at Michael, still gaining height due to the heavy load he was now carrying.

“Fucking go Gavin! GO!” Michael yelled leaning out of his seat to push the stick forward, narrowly missing a block of flats.

**\---**

The whole team watched as Palomino Creek erupted in to clouds of dust and fire, the street cameras cutting out due to the explosion, but this team was fast and soon they had eyes on Ryan and Ray as they sped toward the aircraft location.

“Do we have our eyes in the sky up yet?” the leader asked sternly.

“Chopper is up and keeping their pick up crew in sight, jet is almost ready for take off,” one of the girls called, one head phone hanging off her ear as she spoke to the pilots of both vehicles, their camera feeds blaring on the screen before as she directed the chopper over the streets.

“I want eyes on that chopper, tell jet to stay on them but do not engage,” the leader order as the jet camera shook as pulled away from the ground.

“This would have been such as good time for Linds to take out Ramsey,” a woman muttered from the left hand side of her leader, a white rabbit head mask hanging from her crossed arms by the ear.

“Patience sweet, that’d be too easy, she knows not to ruin my game,” the leader smiled pulling on the woman’s hand and kissing her knuckles softly, “now go, we need to set up for stage three,” she encouraged, accepting a kiss from the woman before she tied back her hair and placed the mask over her face gesturing to the three other masked team members that were waiting for her.

**\---**

Soon enough everyone was split in to their teams, Ray and Ryan had made it to airport and grabbed a small airplane, taking off still with a lot of police attention and no guns to defend themselves with as they relied solely on speed to get away. Meanwhile Lindsay and Geoff had made it on to the train dropping in and setting a flare in the back bucket so that Gavin and Michael, who were safely in the air, could locate them and drop the port-a-potty.

Many attempts passed with the train heading further in to the town than they’d planned for, bridges and tunnels causing problems as Gavin followed the train from the air but was unable to drop the load in time despite the numerous yells of his team mates.

“We’ve got jets coming in,” Gavin warned as one looped around him before disappearing again, circling back and almost running in to Ryan as he piloted toward the train.

“Why the fuck is there a jet this far out?” Michael question shooting after it as it disappeared out of range.

“Alright we’re ready to jump out of plane, gonna parachute on to the train,” Ryan called wind whipping past him and tearing his voice from the mic as he jumped, quickly followed by Ray.

The pair just missed the train landing in a carpark beside the tracks and managing to grab a car, speeding after the train with the chopper still following above them. It wasn’t looking good for the chopper as its engines began to pump out thick black smoke, pushing it toward the train and an up coming bridge.

“Guys we’re really smoking, we’ve entered the count down, we’ve got to get on the fucking train and get the fuck out of here,” Michael warned as they powered after the train, spotting Ryan and Ray’s car as it zoomed beneath them. The team stayed silent as Gavin began to descend towards the bucket of the train.

“This is it Gavin, this is your moment…” Michael mumbled, a slight panic filling his gut as the warning light flickered above him.

“I know,” Gavin whined his eyes glued to the train and upcoming bridges.

“You’ve got to do it now or we’re screwed,” Michael warned, getting ready to jump from the cockpit and replacing his ear piece.

“I know!” he yelled, eyes glued to the bridge before him as it quickly drew nearer, “Dropped it!” he yelled pulling the chopper back at the last second and flinging the port-a-potty beneath the train.

“It’s in!” Geoff yelled as the large plastic container landed behind him with a thud, sliding backward in the bucket as the train continued to move forward, the whirring od dying rotors echoing behind him as Gavin fought to pull the helicopter back up.

Michael had already jumped out at this point, landing with a thud as the train rushed past him, leaving him in the dust behind it. He barely had a minute before he was running after it.

“Who’ve we got on the train?” Lindsay yelled from the front as she made her way towards the driver’s box.

“I’m on the train, Ryans on the train, Rays on the train, Lindsays on the train! Come on boys you can make it!” Geoff yelled standing firm in his bucket with his back to the gold.

“I’m parachuting down now. Oh no! Theres a tunnel! Theres a tunnel!” Gavin began to screech as his window of landing became smaller and smaller beneath him, landing on a storage crate and letting himself fall flat allowed him to just miss the roof of the tunnel, his back pack scrapping along it until he emerged from beanth and jumped down in to the same bucket as Geoff.

“I’m in! I’m in!” Gavin breathed, unhooking his parachute from his back.

“Alright Doose Goose is in, Crap Catch where are you?” Lindsay asked, knocking out the driver and calling forward so she could get the tracks alterted in time. “I’m a little busy right now!” Michael yelled as he ducked behind a pillar to avoid a round of gun fire from some police that had caught up to him. In the panic Ryan had jumped back off the train. Heading back to help Michael in anyway he could he stole his own car and managed to run down a couple cops giving Michael a window just big enough to make a run for one of the abandoned cars, kicking out the driver that he’d shot and taking his space before speeding down the tracks after Ryan.

“I’m calling Lester! I’m calling Lester!” he yelled pulling closer to the rear of the train, Ryan’s car a couple buckets in front, reaching the front of the train before Michael and getting ready to jump on. Gavin meanwhile had made his way up the train, standing in the front cart as Ryan screeched past them.

“Ryan come on!” he yelled, holding an arm out to Ryan as he jumped toward him, grabbing Gavin’s arm to pull himself in and dragging them both to the ground, “you okay?” he asked, leaning up beside Ryan as he caught his breath.

Ryan nodded, giving Gavin a thumbs up as he turned his attention back to his orginal task. He’d never been in the driver’s seat of a train and knowing the break off for their hideout was coming up, he knew they needed to slow slightly and so he made his way up the side of the driver’s box.

“Yeah, it’s going great, the cut that this comes away with is going to be huge, I’ll try and get a bigger share so it’ll make our job easier in the long run,” Lindsay laughed down the phone, oblivious to Gavin as he pulled the door open behind her, “Oh yeah, I’ll ditch these dorks at the lay down, give you the coordinates for pick up soo…” Lindsay cut off as she turned and spotted Gavin in the door way, his face a mix of confused and shock as she acted on impulse and kicked him sharply in the chest causing him to fall back off the train.

Gavin’s yells echoed through the ear pieces as he fell back along with Lindsay’s fake panic.

“Gavin! Gavin! Gavin’s gone, it’s fine, it’s fine,” she lied, hanging up her phone and throwing it out the opposite window.

“I’ve got Gavin, Gav, Gav, get in!” Michael yelled pulling up beside him as he rolled across the gravel.

“How’d he fall out?” Geoff questioned, leaning over the side of his bucket; watching Michael’s car as he edged closer.

“Don’t know must have slipped,” Lindsay lied hearing the door click shut beside her and turning to see Ryan, his hands already balled in to fists. He’d seen what she’d just done, but why? 

Without a second thought she kicked out at him, Ryan catching her leg and spinning it quickly so she had her back to him. Again she kicked out, using her hands to balance and aiming her second kick at his groan so he fell to floor and released her other leg which she brought quickly in to the side of his neck causing him to stumble back in to the door and clicking it open. 

Lindsay didn’t waste another second as she sent two more swift kicks in to the side of Ryan’s head, smashing it against the metal framing of the door until he crumbled to the floor.

Michael and Gavin would be coming up beside her soon, she had to make this look like an accident as she jumped out and dragged him to the first bucket chucking him over the side.

“Ryan!” she screamed, watching as he bounced and rolled, hitting Michael’s car as they sped past. Her scream was accompanied by Gavin and Michael’s but they didn’t have a chance to stop and so carried on, knowing that Kdin wasn’t far behind in an unmarked chopper ready to pick any of them up.

“What happened! How did we go from five people on the train to three?” Geoff yelled, his bucket passing Ryan’s unmoving body.

“Ryan slipped! Think he was looking for Michael and Gav ready to play hero, I tried to grab but he was gone, hitting Michael must have finished him off!” Lindsay explained, staying in the first bucket as Michael’s now blood spattered police cruiser pulled along side with Gavin in the back.

“You ready boy?” Michael asked, spinning the car around without waiting for Gavin’s answer. Gavin followed him out, aiming for the first bucket while Michael made a jump for the second. As Gavin pulled himself up, Lindsay stepped in front of him whacking him in the head with the butt of her gun before shoving his now unconscious body back off the train in the hope that he’d forget what he heard.

“I’m on,” Michael called in victory, “wheres Gav? Did Gavin make it?” he asked, sitting up in his bucket.

“Gavin missed, it whacked his head off the side of the train,” Lindsay told him, making her way back to the driver’s box, “we’re almost at the break off before the depo,” she said, slowly lowering the train’s speed.

“How did we go from five people on the train, to four with two dead!” Geoff exclaimed, making his way toward Michael as he yelled apologise to the wind. “My boi, I’m sorry my boi,” he cried, sitting in his bucket with his back to it’s side as Ray moved towards him.

“It’s alright their memory will live on, that we have Kdin picking them up already, you got them Ramsey-Alpha-One?” Lindsay asked, watching the tracks as they moved in to place and steered them toward the abandoned depo.

“Yeah got, Ryan already his heads a fucking mess, gonna take him a while to come back but we’ll do what we can here, just picking up Gavin now, he just seems knocked out,” Kdin called back as one of the mercenaries he’d grabbed loaded Gavin in to the back of the chopper and began to check him over while the other continued to work at controlling the bleeding from Ryan’s head.

“Alright good to hear, meet you at Little Havana,” she clarified slowing to a crawl as the depo came in to view.

“Roger that,” Kdin answered steering the helicopter toward the south-east hideout that everyone was meeting at.

**\---**

“Okay I’ve seen enough, back to work on stage three, we’ll catch up later when we pick her up,” the leader order, taking a deep breath as each of the screens returned back to their current work duties.

Fake AH had done well, a lot better than she’d expected, although she’d have to talk to Lindsay about her actions. With one of them dead and the other just knocked out, there was always a hope that they wouldn’t remember enough to accuse Lindsay of anything, if they did there was no way Ramsey would keep her around with him already being paranoid.

They’d sort something out, maybe make Lindsay disappear if she had to. But for now the team would have to play their rivals by ear and wait to she what they would do next.  
Lindsay being out of the company wasn’t the worse thing that could happen, she had other eyes in there controlling what went through and when. She still had the upper hand in this game, and it was only just beginning.

**\---**

Loading the bags out of the port-a-potty was less than pleasant, all the movement and swinging about had meant that the left over water had soaked through the fabric of the bags making them soggy and stink as they were piled in to the two waiting cars. The team didn’t really speak as they worked apart from the occasional grunt or gag at the state of the bags. And once they were in the cars it remained quiet, driving through the growing dusk toward Little Havana.

Little Havana was one of the most used hideout points for Fake AH. It sat on the boundary of the desert with nothing but open plains for miles around. Made from sandy coloured bricks it was almost impossible to see in the heat until you go close and even more difficult to find at night unless the porch lamps had been lit and you were already pretty close. It wasn’t a long drive from the depo but Geoff was still thankful to see the house come in to view with the large black chopper beside it and a warm light being cast from the porch.

Two mercenaries stood guarding the door as Geoff pulled up in front of the porch; Michael not far behind.

“Help us with these bags, guys, the sooner everythings inside the sooner you’re free to leave,” Geoff ordered, popping the trunk and grabbing two bags and hauling them up the stairs as the two mercs quickly jumped to work, splitting between Geoff and Michael’s car as Michael and Ray began to unload their trunk.

Inside Gavin was sprawled across one of the couches, an ice pack bandaged to the side of his and a fair sized bruise already creeping from beneath it, Kdin and Ryan were no where to be seen so he guessed that Kdin was getting Ryan’s head injury sorted out in one of the bedrooms.

“Why are the bags wet?” one of the mercenaries asked, placing on the large metal table they used for planning.

“Cause we transported them in a port-a-potty and it still had some water in,” Michael answered matter of factly, dumping two bags beside him with a loud bang. The merc grimaced slightly but kept his mouth shut as he took the last bag from the car and moved it in to the garage behind the house.

When Kdin came out from the bedrooms, his hands and shirt were slightly stained with red and black. Geoff stood from where he’d been sorting the bars in to piles with the others.

“He gonna be okay?” he asked, Kdin nodded gesturing to his clothing.

“The bleedings stopped so he should be fine, his face paint gets everywhere though, wasn’t sure if he’d want me to take it off,” he said settling the worry that had been curling slowly in Geoff’s stomach.

“Don’t worry about it, Ray you want to do it?” Ray nodded, pushing himself up from the table and retreating to the bathroom to grab make up remover and cotton wool wipes before following Kdin to wear Ryan was lay.

"Gav gonna be alright?" Geoff asked once Kdin had come back, leaving Ray to his work.

"Yeah mild concussion I think, he woke up once we got here and got me to tell him where the rest of you were before passing out again," he said looking over Gavin as he slept on the couch, the ice pack hopefully helping the swelling in his temple and brow but not doing anything for the large bruise that had already spread. Geoff thanked him, letting him leave with a promise that they'd be in touch tomorrow.

Ray worked methodically as he removed the mix of black, grey, and red face paint from Ryan's skin. Starting on his right side and working across as he carefully avoided the various cuts and bandages covering Ryan’s face along with bruises that seemed to replace most of the face paint that Ray removed.

“I still don’t get why you wear all this shit,” Ray mumbled, throwing another wipe on to the growing pile as he finished cleaning his left cheek, “your handsome as shit, that’s enough to throw anyone off, don’t need to terrify them to stop them shooting you,” he laughed leaning down even though he wasn’t sure if Ryan could even hear him.

He finished cleaning Ryan’s face in silence, letting the solid clicks of gold bars and occasional chatter fill in the background noise.

Now that Kdin and his team had left it was only the six of them in the house. This one was bigger than the last hideout they'd stayed in.  
With four bedrooms and two bathrooms, one of which Geoff and Jack usually claimed for themselves since it had a large bath in. Most of their hideouts consisted of the same layout with the kitchen and living room being open plan, the only difference in this house was that the former open plan dining space had been changed in to a planning area with large metal table and whiteboard, with several maps of Achievement City and various other territories scattered across it.  
The living room was bigger than normal as well, with an actual tv and a couple consoles so they at least had something to do in their downtime.

In the past it had been one of Ray’s favourite hideouts because you could see from every angle and the roof was really easy to get on to, also it had wifi which was a miracle considering it’s location. But since he’d become so used to the noise of the city outside his bedroom window the silence of this place now creeped him out slightly and always had him feeling on edge and like someone was watching him.

It was fair to say that the past events that had rattled the business hadn’t helped him call down, so instead he went back out in to the planning area to count bars and help accumulate how much the whole lot was probably worth if they sold it off to the right people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based of Lindsay's Heist but obviously Ryan and Gavin died through game glitches in that and couldn't have that happening so yay! Badass bitch Lindsay fucking up and being a meaney, poor Gav and Rye.
> 
> Once again, I absolutely love you all, the amount of attention this story has got so far as been amazing and surpassed anything I ever expected, just hope I can keep you guys interested and not having you hate me by the end.  
> Thanks again for all your lovely comments :) xoxo


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long, uni deadlines are a bitch. Enjoy?

Ryan wasn’t sure what time he woke up. He knew it was still evening, long before the sun was set to rise from above the horizon as the vague light of the evening through stripes across his bed covers. He knew where he was, Little Havana, a hide out in the south of the country that seemed miles from everything with no direct road or route unless you could search for tracks in the sand.

His head swam slightly as he pushed himself up, swinging his legs out of the bed in one smooth motion and quickly regretting it as his body screamed in protest. He steadied himself for a second, controlling his breathing and guessing from the lack of noise that most of the team was asleep, made his way to the living room and kitchen in search of something to drink that could quench his thirst and prevent the rolling in his stomach.

A low clinking had him on edge as he crept in to the kitchen spotting the piles of golden bars that littered the table, one slowly depleting as Lindsay moved it in to one of the duffle bags they’d been using. She was dressed in dark clothes with her hair tied back as she worked quickly but quietly, not wanting to wake anyone as she left.

Ryan ignored the twist of anger in his stomach as he leant against the doorframe watching her. He knew there was something making the anger bubble within him but he couldn’t quite place it. The thick gauze bandage covering his head was the only reasoning he needed for why he couldn’t remember anything up to the point that Gavin fell off the train first, but that’d soon change, Ryan’s mind had a knack for healing itself quickly with minimal memory loss and this would be no different.

Lindsay had finished placing each of her own bars in to the bag now, zipping it quickly before searching for a pen and paper so she could scrawl out a quick message. Her girlfriend or one of the girls would be here to pick her up soon so she needed to hurry, but she couldn’t just leave without telling Geoff where she’d gone otherwise he and the crew would ultimately jump to a worse case scenario and in turn would probably veto this location as a hideout. No, her boss needed all the hideouts online and ready to go so she had every one on record when the time was right.

“Leaving so soon?” a voice asked from the darkened hallway. Pausing in her search Lindsay looked toward the noise. It was Ryan bruised and bandaged but with a flame of anger in his blue eyes that Lindsay had learnt to be cautious of.

“Erm yeah, no where for me to sleep here, and a base needs me back to run some last minute mechanics,” she lied, rambling and turning back in search of of pen after finding a small notepad stuffed in one drawer of a desk.

“You know the couches are pretty damn comfortable,” Ryan bargained stepping forward and leaning against the back of one couch. Lindsay shrugged scribbling out a quick note to Geoff and folding it on top of his gold pile.

“Who’s coming to get you,” Ryan pressed, his eyebrows narrowing in a challenge as he heard the faint sound of helicopter rotors approaching the house. Lindsay heard them too, looking toward the front door and grabbing her bag.

“Just Griffon, she was the only other chopper on call tonight,” Lindsay said pulling open the front door as the helicopter lowered to the ground. Ryan followed her, ignoring the pain in his body as he grabbed hold of her wrist and yanked her back.

“Why you running Lindsay?” he asked again, forcing her to look at him as the chopper squeaked in to a landing position. He could feel the eyes of whoever the pilot was watching him, almost willing him to make a most as Lindsay tugged her arm sharply from his grip.

“Base needs me.” She snapped turning on her heel and jumping the porch steps, “I’ll see you after cool down.” She called ducking beneath the chopper and climbing in the back.

Ryan stayed stood on the porch until he could just make out the small blinking light on the underside of the chopper. Nothing felt right, there was something going on that Lindsay wasn’t telling him.

It was true that she’d never really been a large part of heists so she wasn’t as used to the cramped and not exactly high-class living conditions as the rest of the team were. Of course there was that one heist that she was in with Michael that had resulted in them all dying and Lindsay getting a split of half the money while Michael was all to happy to divvy up his share with the rest of the crew. That had been back when Michael and Lindsay were first a big thing and Michael would pretty much do anything for the woman, although from there Ryan had never really seen her as the most trustworthy soul on the team.

He was still stood in the doorway of the porch when Gavin woke up, stumbling down the hall after hearing the rotors of the chopper through the slightly open window in Geoff’s bedroom.

“Hey Rye, what you doing?” he asked, stepping behind the older man and scrubbing the sleep from his eyes.

Ryan jumped slightly, turning to look at Gavin. The lad was dressed in baggy clothing, the bandage on his head and deep purple bruising that littered his arms and legs making him look young and frail. Ryan smiled slightly, feeling the anger dissipate from him as he closed the door.

“Nothing, just getting some fresh air,” he muttered stepping toward Gavin with a smile; wrapping his arms around his shoulders. Gavin moved in to the touch, his arms looping loosely around Ryan’s waist.

“Well are you coming back to bed? Theres still room with me and Geoff,” Gavin offered, pulling back to look up at Ryan. Ryan grinned but shook his head, taking Gavin’s face in his hands and kissing his forehead softly.

“Thanks for the offer, but I think I’ll sleep alone, still got a lot of healing to do,” he said, his hands tracing down Gavin’s arms and linking with his fingers lightly.

Gavin’s face dropped slightly at the thought that Ryan would be sleeping alone, it was an unusual thing by this point, and it felt wrong but Ryan was right in knowing that he had a lot of healing to do, and that was easier said than done. The only thing that really helped to heal was a full nights sleep and that wasn’t the easiest thing to get when you was subconsciously stopping yourself from:  
A) squishing another person, B) falling out of bed, or were continuously waking up cause one of your boyfriends accidently elbowed you in a broken rib.

Ryan took one of his hands back from Gavin’s grip turning the younger down the hall and back to Geoff’s room, pushing him lightly over the threshold.

“I’ll see you in a few hours,” he mumbled. Gavin nodded giving Ryan a small smile as he shut the door and climbed back in to bed beside Geoff, the terrifying boss cuddling up to him again within seconds as he wrapped a tattooed arm around Gavin’s waist.

Gavin smiled down at him, shuffling slightly deeper beneath the warmth of the covers and manoeuvring so Geoff’s head was leant on his chest his arm wrapped around the older man’s shoulders as he kissed his hair lightly.

Ryan sighed at the closed door, turning on his heel to head back to the kitchen where he grabbed a glass of water and slung back a couple pain killers and sleeping tablets before going back to his own room and falling in to an easy sleep.

\-------

The next day started with confusion, Geoff was the first up giving Gavin a light kiss on the forehead as he moved out of the bed to go about his day. On the table lay Lindsay note,

‘ _Headed back to base early this morning, mechanics needed me. See you in a few days, Tuggey_ ’.

He frowned down at the note but shrugged it off throwing the paper in the bin as Michael and Ray shuffled in working around each other as they went about their morning routines before curling on the couch with cereal and coffee as they clicked through the various news items of that morning.

After breakfast Geoff called Jack to give him a run through of the heist as well as filling him in on Lindsay’s disappearance which Jack too was surprised about, since he’d been in the base all night going over inventory of vehicles, weaponry, and man power and he hadn’t seen Lindsay once.

Gavin joined them just before midday, slotting himself comfortably between Ray and Michael as they co-oped yet another Black Ops game, Geoff made him have a quick check over since the bruise on his temple had barely began to fade but Gavin quickly brushed him off saying that he felt just fine and Ryan should have been his bigger worry.

The man in question didn’t join them until the sun was once again disappearing behind the horizon. Looking every bit like he’d been hit by a car and brought back from the dead he slumped in to the bar stool beside the kitchen waiting for the coffee machine to reheat and popping two painkillers on to the counter.

Geoff forced some food in to his stomach first though, throwing some pasta and sauce in front of him and checking over his various cuts and bruises as he ate. Ryan’s skin was pale, his face and neck still coloured a deep purple and red from where the bones had crunched and snapped, and certain joints still made him cringe and pull away as Geoff pressed them and got him to twist this way and that. Geoff tutted slightly as he pressed around the deep gash on Ryan’s forehead,

“How did you even fall off the fucking train, you were on, you was in the clear,” he muttered stepping back from Ryan so he could pull his shirt back on and finally take the painkillers that had been taunting him from the counter. Geoff leant against the counter, facing him with his fingers laced as Ryan cringed out a shrug.

“I don’t know Geoff, the last thing that I remember so far is seeing Gav fly off the train and hit the ground,” he said his eyes slipping over to Gavin who was browsing through the bookshelf beside the desk in the back of the room.

“I’ll get there though Geoff,” he assured the boss as he looked at him worriedly, “it’ll come back and you’ll be the first to know. Lindsay didn’t seem to happy to see me this morning though.” Geoff frowned at him unsure of what Ryan was implying before he smirked and walked away joining the lads in the living area as he flung an arm around Gavin, plucking the book from between his fingers to read over the cover and making the lad cry out in protest. Gavin pouted at him holding his hand out until Ryan hummed in approval and gave it him back, settling deeper in to the couch as he switched between reading about the History of Cinematography over Gavin’s shoulder and watching Michael and Ray blast heads from shoulders as they ran through cities.

Geoff watched over them happily, knowing that tomorrow they’d get work done and then head back to the base in the evening. He didn’t care that today they’d spent hours doing nothing but reconnecting with being normal and when he looked over the piles of gold that still filled the dining table he couldn’t help but grin.

Despite the injuries of Gavin and Ryan they’d pulled off the heist, one of the biggest in their time as a newer crew of six. The gold they’d collected would be given to Joel who would go on to sell it for a very pretty penny, the money they got back off that would mean they could resupply and really form the army and defences that Geoff had been aiming for since the rival had come on the scene. If it was a war this ‘M’ wanted, a war they would get and Geoff would be ready to fight for what he’d built up over years as well as fighting to protect anything they threatened.

“Hey click the news on Michael, should probably check to see if anything is going on in AC,” Geoff called at six as he finished recounting out the gold bars and calculating an estimate for how much they’d get by the end of everything if stocks stayed as good as they were. Michael grumbled slightly, fishing the remote from where it had slipped between the seats changing the channel just as the top stories were being announced for the evening. Among them was word about a large crash that had taken place in downtown AC killing five people, a recent discovery of how red meat could cause cancer, and of course a catch up on the bank robbery that had taken place yesterday.

“ _We do know that this job was done by professionals and we don’t doubt that The Fake AH Crew are once again behind it. The robbery resulted in almost 50 deaths and numerous injures including police and special operation quits as well as around 500million dollars worth of gold being stolen, we managed to track them to the train lines where they did hijack a cab and took it off a planned course. The train in question was found after the driver, who thankfully had not been killed, sent out an SOS but by then the criminals had vanished. We are working on finding these criminals and bringing them to justice, as usual if anyone has any information on this group of criminals or any information on the whereabouts of individuals please contact us, this can be done anonymously,_ ” a detective that was known to the crew reeled off, the news operative nodding solemnly beside him obviously bored.

It was same story every time a heist took place. There was some big number of casualties, some number of stolen goods, a brief track of their last known whereabouts and then a push for information that never came up with any results. However, this time something strange happened, as the news reported got ready to hand back to the studio the screen glitched, a strongly altered voice breaking through the speakers,

“ _Anonymously you say?_ ” it asked, the screen glitching between the news studio where the reports looked very scared and confused as they watched the monitors and another scene of a boldly painted black M on a grey wall.

“ _Hello there people of Achievement City, hello Fake AH. We’re sorry to interrupt you’re normal viewing but we come to you with information. _” The crew watched as the screen changed to show two masked figures they’d become familiar with, two women dressed in black and covered in plastic overalls with animal masks covering their faces stood either side of a chair. Another woman was strapped in to it, a black cloth sack covering her face but red brown hair spilled from beneath it covering her shoulders while a large pick banner hung in the background, ' _Happy Third Warning_ '. __

“ _This is Miss Lindsay Tuggey, a partner of The Fake AH Crew and a accomplice of yesterdays bank robbery. Now you police people want information on the whereabouts of these people, but why should we do that when we are clearly better at tracking them down ourselves, and why should we leave you to inact punishment? Leave them in a cell? In a prison to face trail? Give Fake AH a chance to get their people back? I don’t think so… Rabbit,” the voice said, their voice raising slightly in anger as she listed against the police but lowering back to its steady tone as they called to one of the women._

The woman in the white rabbit mask nodded her head once moving from beside the woman in the chair to tug her forward until her chest touched her knees and her neck was stretched out. The woman began to scream but the gag that filled her mouth beneath the sack caused it to be muffled, barely making across the room to the microphone as the voice called to the other woman.

“ _Deer, would you do the honours please,_ ” she said. The deer headed woman nodded moving her hands from behind her back to reveal a large shining machete that glinted in the light, she stood beside the woman, blocking most of her body as she lined up the blow and rested the blade of the knife on the back of Lindsay’s neck.

“ _For not pulling the plug on this broadcast we shall be kind, here is the location of the main crew, see you soon Ramsey, Jones, Narvaez, Haywood, Free,_ ” the voice laughed as the screen turned to black, a set of coordinates cutting through it in white as screams filled the speakers followed by a thump, gargling, another thump and then silence.

As the crew sat staring at the screen in horror Michael felt tears clog his throat, his vision blurring as Geoff began to yell. Most of them were still stunned, Lindsay had just had her murder sentence carried out on live television by no one other than M and her band of animal faced creeps, they sat rooted to their seats until Geoff began to shove and pull at them, pushing them to gather their shit and then get to the cars.

“Guys, we have to fucking move, those are the coordinates of this place, we have to move now while we have the chance!” he yelled throwing gold bars in to various bags and continuing to shove at his team. Ryan was the first to step in to action, dragging Michael and Ray up while Geoff grabbed Gavin and steering them toward the bedroom to gather their things. They worked quickly and in silence, not thinking just doing as they piled clothing and various weapons in to bags, quickly leaving bedrooms to pack away the most expensive of the weaponry and plans from the walls around the heisting area.

In under forty-five minutes they had as much as they could carry stuffed in to bags and carriers and in the trucks of the two cars that they’d driven to the base after the heist yesterday. Michael still didn’t speak as he climbed in to the back of the vehicle with Ray and Gavin while Ryan took the passenger seat and Geoff drove, his wheels screeching on the polished concrete of the garage floor before they gripped and blasted them out on to the sand plains.

He circled around, heading the opposite way of the road and driving for several miles before he began to make a large loop back toward the road. The drive was silent, Geoff’s knuckles were white as he gripped at the wheel with his eyes trained on the dark expanse of land before him while Ryan stay vigilant at his side, three guns sat in his foot-well and a pistol was held ready in his hand, his window down causing a cold draft to blow through the car mixed with dust and grit that had the lads shielding their eyes slightly in the back. Ray stared at the back of Geoff’s chair one arm around Michael’s shoulders as he sobbed silently in to Ray’s chest and clutched at his and Gavin’s hands. Gavin too leant lightly against Michael’s back rubbing circles across his shirt as he stared at nothing in particular.

Nothing was said until Ryan convinced Geoff to slow down as they approached the road. They were miles outside of Achievement City, stuck in the south tracks that ran for hours with no stops or signs of civilisation. Once they’d passed the turn they’d usually take for the now useless desert hideout Ryan risked making the call to Jack.

“Jack, it’s Ryan,” he muttered, his eyes glancing over the lads in the backseat as Jack breathed a sigh of relief.

“Thank god you’re safe, is everyone with you where are you?” he asked quickly, pacing back and forth in his office. Kdin and Celeb watched him from large arm chairs, they gaze glassy.

“Yeah we’re all safe, Geoff got us moving as soon as the coordinates came up, we’re on our way back to base now but gonna be a fair few hours before we even touch the south of the city though,” Ryan said as he fastened his window and leant his shoulder against it.

“Alright well just stay safe, probably best to keep to the outer roads, we’re working on finding where the transmission that interrupted the news reports came from so don’t worry about taking your time. Don’t want any of you dying out there... hows Michael?” Jack asked worry filling his heart as he thought about the close connection Michael and had had with Lindsay for centuries.

Ryan glanced back at Michael who had now drifted in to light sleep in Ray’s lap with his legs covering Gavin. He sighed, “He’s alive but it was a blow for sure, M really knows where to hit hard,” he mumbled. Jack huffed down the mic, pulling hand down his face and wringing it around the back of his neck.

“They sure do…” he breathed, “anyway be careful coming back, call once you get in to the city and I’ll keep you up to date if anything changes, let everyone know that I love them,” Jack said, Ryan nodded to himself.

“I will do, stay safe,” he mumbled.

“And Ryan… I love you,” Jack said his voice sad but meaning every syllable.

“I love you, see you soon,” Ryan replied smiling softly as he hung up and turned to look at Geoff leaning across the console to plant a kiss on his cheek. “From Jack, he says he loves you and stay safe,” he told him, Geoff smiled nodding and reaching out a hand to take Ryan’s giving it a soft squeeze and letting it sit laced with Ryan’s own on the gent’s thigh.

They drove in silence after that, stopping half way to pee and for Ryan and Geoff to swap places but it was still and long drive until the first lights of the city came in to view; Geoff text Jack once they made it in to the city in the early hours and began to take the long routes toward the city and their base which had quickly become home.


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trying to update as much as I can before next week cause it's christmas and I'm going home so going to be spending it with the family as well as doing a lot of filming and editing.  
> Enjoy :)

"You fucking killed me off!” Lindsay screamed barging in to the base and causing several faces to turn and glare at her for disrupting the silence that usually fell around them.

M sighed, turning in her chair to look at Lindsay as she approached.

“I cleaned up your mess, it was either me or Ramsey who would have took you down properly and not just a throwaway body double,” she said speaking calmly but with the authority that she knew not even her girlfriend would question.

“What mess? I was in the clear, neither Ryan or Gavin would have remembered anything,” Lindsay whined slowing her pace as she bypassed a group of animal headed mercs getting ready to head out.

“You basically tried to single handily take down the newbie and the psycho, did you have a mental lapse in forgetting they’re immortal! And while Gavin may not remember what specifically happened Haywood has a very annoying habit of remembering everything that happened before he died,” she barked turning back to look at the table which was littered with various plans and layouts of Achievement City.

Lindsay pouted sitting down next to her and leaning her chin on her fist.

“Well... the fuck am I meant to do now?” she mumbled, picking at one of the sheets and scanning over it. M slapped it from her hand, drawing her attention.

“You will work here full time, just like the old days, Cracker and Blacker right?” M asked, her deep brown eyes pleading as she circled her fingers around Lindsay’s hand.

“Of course, Cracker and Blacker… so whats the next plan?” she asked, the pair grinned at each other turning back to the plans before them.

\-------

It was almost 9am before the crew finally reached their home base, pulling around the garages and unloading the bags in silence before handing them off to various people so they could be sent to the right area of the base while they pushed themselves toward the primary base.

No sooner had the doors opened Jack was there, taking Geoff’s face between his hands and silently checking that he was okay before he wrapped his arms around Michael the lad accepting the hug wearily as he wrapped his arms around Jack’s waist, his hands forming fists in the back of Jacks shirt. Ray stood just behind him but Jack soon pulled him in as well, not caring as fresh tears spilled from Michael’s eyes and soaked in to his shirt. The rest of the team dispersed, Ryan to find some pain medication, Geoff toward the office where he knew Kdin and Celeb would probably be waiting for a debrief, while Gavin found himself wandering back toward his own office on the surveillance level.

“We need to kill them Jack,” Michael croaked in to his chest.

“I know, we will,” Jack assured stroking Michael’s back and kissing his hair lightly before releasing him with a soft smile, “we’ll get them Michael, I promise.”

Michael smiled at him standing on tip toe to kiss him on the cheek before letting Ray tug him back out of the base toward their bedroom to hopefully sleep off some of the dread that had filled his heart since he hadn’t slept well in the car.

Jack pushed a hand through his hair, retreating back to the office to find Geoff who had sat himself at the desk with his head in his hands, Kdin and Caleb no where to be found. Jack felt his heart sink placing an arm around his boyfriend's shoulder and pulling him against him feeling Geoff relax slightly as his arm looped around his waist.

“What are we gonna do Jack?” he asked staring down at the pages upon pages of information and city maps and figures and locations.

“We’re gonna get them and we’re gonna make them pay,” Jack said, he thought that if he repeated it enough it would start to sound real, like they really could do it, but every word still sounded like a lie. They’d been after this guy for months and they still weren’t any closer to taking them down and now things had started to get real personal. If they had had access to the crew and their team it was going to get dangerous and it went against everything that Geoff had fought to build up.

Being part of the crew was supposed to be safe, you had that many eyes on you and that much security at it was impossible for anything to happen to you with out one of the team seeing it. That was it! The whole outside of the safe house was littered with cameras, true hacking them now might be a risk since there could still be police activity going on around there but it was there best shot.

“When did Lindsay leave last night?” Jack asked unable to stop the excitement leaking through his voice. Geoff looked up at him confused but quickly dismayed as he shook his head.

“No idea, all I got was a note when I woke up,” he grumbled, letting his head fall back in to his hands.

“She left early, three, maybe four,” Ryan said appearing in the door way, “I woke up to get a drink and some painkillers, found her packing up, said Griffon was picking her up,” he relayed, Jack grinned at him closing the gap between them quickly and grabbing his face.

“Ryan you’re amazing,” he said kissing his solidly on the mouth before taking off toward Gavin’s office. Ryan and Geoff exchanged confused glances, but jogged after him catching him the elevator.

“Jack what are you on about?” Geoff asked squeezing in beside the other two as the doors shut.

“Little Havana was littered with security cams outside so we could watch from the inside and from here, saving that the cops haven’t pulled the lot down Gav should be able to get in there and look back through the footage to see when Lindsay left and who picked her up,” Jack rambled bouncing on the spot as the elevator creaked to a halt on the surveillance floor.

“Okay but why couldn’t we do that from the main area?” Ryan asked following the pair toward Gavin’s office.

“Cause if it wasn’t one of ours that picked her up that means someone else knows the location of that hideout…” Jack muttered, keeping his voice low as he pushed through a set of double doors.

“And that means they’re hitting us from the inside,” Geoff muttered connecting the dots. He’d thought himself crazy when it first came up, but if that really what was happening that they needed to keep every bit of new information under wraps and within the main six.

“Exactly,” Jack confirmed, pushing open Gavin’s door and calling to him, “Gavin?”

Gavin sat up spinning slightly in his chair to look at the silhouettes of his team. He’d been sat in the dark again, the monochrome lighting from his monitors barely lighting his desk and face as light spilled in through the door. Jack flicked the lights causing him to flinch and shield his eyes.

“Jesus Christ you look dead. Why are you up here instead of in bed?” Ryan asked, moving to Gavin’s side instinctively.

Gavin shrugged pointing to the screens as the others entered and door slid shut.

“I like watching the city, also it’s not silent in here,” he mumbled turning back to the screens. Jack and Geoff exchanged a worried look before Geoff stepped in front of him, pushing his chair back and leaning so they were at the same level.

“Gav I know this has been shit lad but we need you to look up something,” he asked, Gavin nodded his brows furrowing slightly as he looked around the small group. “We think Lindsay was working with someone else, we need you to get in to the footage from Little Havana and check between three and four AM,” Geoff said. Gavin stared at him for a moment and then began to shake his head.

“No, no Geoff, she wasn’t… she wasn’t working with anyone else, Geoff, she’s dead… M killed her to get at Michael, she’s gone” he rambled, his voice cracking as the image from the tv screen replaying in his mind. The rabbit pulling her down stretching her neck out while the deer lined up the shot, blade slowly splitting the skin as it sat there waiting.

“Gavin listen to me.” Geoff said sternly, taking Gavin’s face between his hands, “I know this is hard, but we need to check,” he urged. Gavin stared at him then up at Jack and Ryan who nodded as well, he sighed looking back at Geoff and giving him a single nod as he stepped out the way and allowed Gavin to move forward again.

Gavin worked quickly and in silence just leaving the others to sit around and wait and watch. Jack ran off to grab them a couple drinks since Gavin, Ryan and Geoff were basically running on fumes at that point.

Within the hour Gavin was in and receiving live footage from the house. It looked empty but completely ransacked, the front door was hanging off it’s hinges and every piece of furniture seemed to have been flipped and chest of drawers turned out, he pushed past it starting his search for the hard drives that would contain the past saved footage and finding nothing.

“Looks like the cops have pulled the hard drives,” he grumbled, continuing his search and coming up trumps. Geoff groaned,

“For fuck sake, and theres no chance you get to it from there?” he asked leaning over Gavin’s chair as he moved back from the screen and took a long drink of Red Bull. He shook his head

“Their no chance, they might look through it but there’s no way it’d ever be uploaded on to their database, I’m gonna need the physical hard drive,” Gavin said gesturing toward the computer. Geoff groaned, scrapping his hands down his face.

“So we need to get in to the station,” Ryan stated from where he’d been sat at the back of the room, Gavin and Geoff turned to look at him.

Gavin nodded, “Either that or we need one of our guys on the inside to get it, but if we’re not trusting our own branches…” Gavin faded off looking up at Geoff.

“We ready for a trip out lads?” Geoff grinned, Ryan’s lips sliding in to his signature smirk as Geoff looked around the small group.

“Hope you weren’t thinking about leaving us out,” the four turned to look at the door where Michael and Ray were leant listening in to the conversation. They both looked over tired, Michael’s eyes outlined in red from where he’d been crying.

“Wouldn’t think about it boi,” Gavin smiled holding his fist out to Michael who bumping it before wrapping his arm around Gavin’s shoulder. Geoff smiled at them, eyes scanning over the crew.

“Lets get this shit planned,” Geoff grinned.

Gavin barely strained a finger getting in to the Achievement City Police Department and soon had each of their security cameras flickering across the screens, quickly working his way through the files so he knew where they’d have to aim for once they were in.

Meanwhile everyone else got themselves ready preparing weapons and cleaning themselves in to the team that the police force feared. Jack got the car ready, the large black Roosevelt that Fake AH had made their signature car, they weren’t bothered about making a scene here it was all about reclaiming their territory and name as the most feared crew in Achievement City. It was also going to be a huge fuck you to M, something for them say that they could never be bullied and beat down, they’d always come back kicking a screaming with smiles on their faces.

Reconvening back in Gavin’s surveillance office the hunger pouring off the team was tangible, each of them shift eagerly as Gavin ran them over the details he’d managed to grab about what information they had and where it was located.

“We’re obviously hitting before midnight so the fact that it’s being moved to FBI then wont be a problem, what will be the problem is how many cops are currently lurking about the place during the day, we need them out of there if we’re even gonna get close,” Gavin said flicking through the cameras to show the bundles of cops and detectives littered throughout the station.

“Easy, despite M’s best attempts I’ve still got a couple mercenary bases littered about, I’ll get them to cause havoc, no questions asked,” Gavin nodded in agreement as Ryan pulled out his phone and began to get the balls rolling.

“Okay so we’ll have the car and everyone posted around this corner, Ray as soon the first lot starts to shift out your moving up to this building, it faces the station and should give you an easy snipe point, everyone else is gonna have to wait for my mark. I’ll let you know when the stations as bare as its gonna get and then direct you as best as I can through the station to the evidence cages,” the team nodded along with Gavin’s instructions, not putting forward any argument or alternate plan. 

They weren’t planning on letting anyone else, other than the mercs, in on this plan which meant that if they went down they’d be fucked so everyone was dressed up in heavy body armour that protected them from being downed too long, they could fight through bullet wounds in arms and legs but they’d still have to avoid head shots.

With Gavin finished explaining the plan, ear pieces were handed out. Gavin watched them double checking vest straps and guns carefully, this would be one of the first times a job would go off without him being on the scene and if he was honest he was scared. Ryan saw his worry, walking over to the younger man as he leant against his desk.

“You gonna be okay here on your own?” he asked. Gavin nodded waving a hand at him.

“I’ll be fine, more worried about you guys being out there while I’m tucked up safe here,” he crossed his arms tight across his chest looking down at his shoes. Ryan smiled at him placing a finger under his chin and tilting his head up.

“We’ll be fine, you’ll lead us right and we’ll be in an’ out before you know it,” Gavin smiled up at him leaning up toward him slightly while Ryan met him half way with a soft kiss, “stay safe,” he whispered, leaning his forehead against Gavin’s as they pulled away.

“You too,” he whispered back giving Ryan’s hand a small squeeze before turning his attention to the others in the room as they finished up. He stood by the door, wishing each of them luck as they left him behind and disappeared back down the corridor.

Once out of sight Gavin returned to his station, keeping a quarter of the police station’s surveillance open while every other screen was dedicated to tracking the Roosevelt as it sped through the midday traffic and manoeuvred through the city toward the ACPD.

\-------

It didn’t take long for Ryan’s teams to start causing havoc up and down Achievement City and soon police, fire, and ambulance departments were being run ragged around the city as derelict buildings became burning pits and roads gave way to shoot out from ground and roof tops. Gavin watched it all; the police station slowly empty as more and more incidents were called it and all the while the rest of the team sat waiting; ready in the Roosevelt for Gavin’s signal. 

The first to leave the car was Ray with around 80% of the department out on the streets it was the safest moment for him to get to the rooftops without being noticed. As more expositions wracked the city Gavin kept his eyes glued to the screens, even when Meg and Ashely busted in to the surveillance room to ask him where Geoff had gone and what was happening with the city he barely cocked an eyebrow.

“Were getting some information back, that’s all you need to know,” he brushed off, aware that the rest of the team could hear what he was say. Meg and Ashely stared at him in disbelief as their eyes scanned across the screens.

“Meg, Ash what’s going on? The citys gone to pieces,” Barbara yelled, barging through Gavin’s door after seeing the other two women retreat to there.

“Geoff’s doing,” Ashley told her, her eyes watching the camera that was almost locked on the Roosevelt and the waiting team inside.

“Alright lads, when your ready, stations as empty as its gonna get. You’re gonna have to get past the reception desk with an access card, one of the girls at the front will have it,” Gavin called. The team acted without reply each of them piling out the car and stalking across the empty road with their guns drawn and masks on.

They got the card easily, opting to take the two receptionists with them as leverage and protection. Geoff held one against him while Jack kept a hold on the other. Once in the main body of the building however things got a little more spicy, the remaining cops and detectives put up as much fight as they could but the insistent firing of Michael and Ryan made it easy enough for Geoff and Jack to slip off and continue toward the evidence vaults.

“Alright Jack, Geoff, there’s a couple guys on your next left, vaults on the right down that hall,” Gavin instructed, following the pair through the station while another camera stayed in the offices where Michael and Ryan were pinned behind a set of desks that they’d flipped easily. He could just about make out the hostage that had been left with them pinned between Ryan’s legs and practically hugging his thigh as she strained against the strong muscle every time he pushed up, effectively pressing his crotch next to her shoulder.

“Ahh you fuck!” Michael yelled as one cop landed a shot straight through his shoulder, sending him back behind the desk with a gasp. Ryan followed.

“You good?” he asked ignoring the struggling woman beneath him.

“Yeah just the shoulder,” he grimaced, rolling the joint and feeling the bullet slip past enough that he could grab it with his fingers and yank it out with a yell, chucking it at the feet of the woman who gagged, whimpering and straining to get out as she watched the blood pour down Michael’s arm from beneath his t-shirt.

“Right boys we’re in to the vault where we looking lad?” Geoff asked, Gavin quickly running over the information he’d grabbed during their set up.

“You’re wanting row R probably the fifth shelf up, box 6039,” he listed watching the lights flicker on within the vault.

“If you guys could hurry up that’d be great!” Ray yelled over the coms, while the team had been having their own fights inside he’d be keeping anyone else from getting in to the building and taking them by surprise and you could only stay hidden for so long when you was firing shots at coppers.

“Right we’ve got the box anything else we need while we’re here?” Geoff asked lugging the box off the shelf.

“Box 6472 might be of interest to us, grab that as well,” Gavin called, “right lads gonna start short circuiting shit, get ready for alarms and sprinklers,” he warned setting them off in the vault as soon as Jack had locked the door on the woman and the two were running back toward Ryan and Michael.

“Alright no chance of you getting out the front there’s a side door on your next left Geoff. Ry, Michael if you can get to that we should be in the clear, Ray get back down to the car meet them around there, right out the alley and too tight lefts you’ll be at the back of their alley,” Gavin ordered, watching as Ray wiggled himself out of harms way and off the roof back toward the car. In the mean time Ryan and Michael had started to through a couple basic incineration ‘toys’ that Michael had designed, cutting off the cop’s path to their escape route, dragging the hostage with them as a safety precaution.

Soon enough the entire team was running through the station, their clothes getting soaked as more and more sprinklers were set off making the tiles almost lethal, alarms pierced their eardrums until they pushed out through the fire door, Ray screeching to halt just past them and throwing his head out of the window.

“Will you guys hurry the fuck up!” he yelled popping open all the doors so everyone could clamber in. Ryan paused for a second placing the receptionist they’d grabbed against a wall and dipping in to a low bow.

“It’s been a pleasure,” he joked looking up at the woman from his mask who scream and slapped him hard across the face before running for it.

“You’re a fucking psycho Ryan,” Michael laughed as he climbed in rubbing the cheek of his skull mask feeling the slight skin prickle along the skin beneath. Ray had jumped out of the way, allowing Jack to drive while he moved to sit on the passenger side window to shoot, Geoff clutching his legs and shirt from the passenger seat.

“Head on to the Ghost Line, looks clear enough for you to get some speed up and get out of there,” Gavin told them leaning back more casually in his chair as the team’s laughs and curses echoed through his ears.

He’d forgotten about the woman that had been stood watching him until Meg came and laid a hand on his shoulder, her eyes still watching the screens as the Roosevelt zip through frame after frame, the gaps between them and the police becoming larger and larger until they gave up.

“Right were gonna circle back, take a break downtown at Drogar let things cool down, switch out cars and then head back,” Geoff told Gavin, holding on to Ray as he eased himself back in to the car and sat comfortably on Geoff’s lap, “good play today Gav, we’ll see you soon,” Gavin smiled at the praise from his boss, not making any attempt to change the cameras as he lost sight of the them, still majorly aware that the three women were in the room.

“Thanks Geoff, see you soon,” he replied, “stay safe.”

“You too buddy,” Geoff said. With that Gavin clicked off his ear piece pulling it out and placing it in his pocket as he leant forward switching the cameras back to the main streets and keeping the cameras away from downtown.

“Where are they headed now?” Meg asked nervously, her eyes flicking between the screens and finding the car on none of them.

“Gonna hold up for a while then head back, don’t worry we’ve got it under control,” Gavin smiled, leaning back in his chair and looking toward the trio, “don’t you guys have a rival to be tracking down?” he asked, his voice a little to smug as pride continued to run through his veins. The three women huffed at him, Barbara and Ashley turning on their heels and disappearing first before Meg followed.

\-------

“This changes everything, they got to know they’re people working on the inside,” Ashley hissed to Barbara as Meg jogged to join them.

“It changes nothing, we tell boss, change the course of action if we need to,” Barbara said keeping her voice low as they entered the elevator back to the main AH base.

“So what are we meant to do in the meantime?” Ashley asked, obviously panicked as the elevator clicked up slowly through the levels.

“We carry on, maybe it’s time that boss stopped playing her games,” Meg muttered stepping out of the elevator first as it stopped on their floor. The other two looked at each other unsure of how to react.Boss was awfully fond of her games, killing ‘Lindsay’ off had been a rash decision to hopefully stop her getting properly killed by Ramsey but in doing so it had altered the plan and pretty much made the guys act in a way that M had never guessed. She needed to break them.

It was a slow process but one that seemed to work as Geoff and Jack were run ragged trying to keep a hold on the city while Ryan and Ray lost inventory left and right, the next plan had been to start taking out their ordinance, Michael’s babies, but tracking down their locations had proven a lot more difficult than they’d first thought. Ramsey had caught on to the plan and had been moving things around constantly, if things carried on they were going to have to start destroying Ramsey and his little empire straight on. It wasn’t the best plan, in fact for most of the team it would be suicide, but the boss hoped that it’d be the final push before Ramsey completely lost it and she could pull her girls out of harms way.

\-------

“Drogar!” Ray yelled as he jumped out of the car and jumped up the stairs to the elevator, holding open the doors as everyone else clambered out, Michael and Geoff carrying the two large boxes that Gavin had had them grab.

“Why does he love Drogar so much?” Ryan asked Michael carrying the bags of his and Michael’s weapons.

“It’s the one place he got to name and since it was closest to his little drug empire it literally means drug in Spanish,” Michael explained.

“Also it’s the one place Geoff lets me smoke!” Ray laughed as the rest caught up and clambered in to the elevator.

“Oh yeah, that too,” Michael grinned nudged against Ray as he bounced on the spot.

No sooner had they entered the apartment Ray was off, dropping his bag on the couch and heading to the TV cabinet where he’d kept his hot pink bong and weed. The rest of the team shook their heads, Michael and Geoff placing the boxes on to the kitchen counter while Jack and Ryan took up the coffee table with weapons.

“No, no!” Ray yelled stepping back from the cabinet and slumping to the ground with his bong in hand.

“What’s up Ray? Forget to restock since last time?” Michael asked moving to the cabinet. As thought it was empty, aside from the various pipes and papers there wasn’t a single gram or bag to be found. Ray pouted his face resting on his fists like child as everyone started to laugh.

“We’ll get you some once we’re back home,” Michael said running his fingers through Ray’s hair as he sat down beside him, pulling a bag of weapons across the table toward him and starting to clean it. Ray didn’t make any attempt to move other than to solemnly look down at his bong.

Geoff left them to it, turning his attention to the boxes and pulling the lid of the first. Inside were various packets and files, various pieces of their own stuff that had been picked up from the house probably in the hopes of getting DNA or information off it. Geoff pulled out a couple of the files, revealing more gadgets that the cops had scraped from the house, he reached in pulling out a mobile phone and flipping it over. A stupidly happy bear and bright red bird stared back at him. Geoff shook his head.

“Michael, keep better track of your shit will you!” he yelled holding up the packaged phone. Michael looked up from where he was busy reassembling his gun.

“Oh shit was wondering where that had got to,” he laughed, holding his hands out as Geoff threw it to him with a stern look. Ripping open the package he turned the phone back on typing in his password and groaning as every message from the past several hours came through. He had over a hundred twitter notifications, two new app updates, and several messages from unknown numbers about banks and ppi claims. He flicked open twitter scanning through the various notifications, retweeting a couple that had tweeted him about the havoc Ryan’s men had been causing around the city.

“Hey Ry check this out,” he grinned holding out his phone to Ryan so he could see the skyline picture that someone had taken, plumes of smoke and glimmers of new explosions covering the city scape, the caption ‘ _Love living in Achievement City, Long Live Fake AH_ ’ accompanying it. Ryan laughed at the caption shaking his head.

“Oh I should probably have called off the mercs,” Ryan realised pulling out his phone and sending out a quick alarm telling everyone to fall back. Michael was on a roll then swiping through the app notifications to see if anyone had been lucky enough to actually catch them on camera. One picture grabbed his attention of the Roosevelt, Ray hanging out the window while Ryan and himself shot from the back.

“ 'Would be cool to live like this one day’,” Michael quoted laughing as he showed the picture to Ryan and Ray before continuing his scrolling, “these people could literally die at the hands of us at anytime and yet they choose to love it, strange world we live in,” he pondered quietly, opening up the camera so he could get a snap shot of the various dismantled guns that littered the table and floor.

“Yeah a strange world where a criminal has his own fucking twitter account,” Geoff grunted stepping behind him with several bags of wiring and metal, shaking his head at Michael as he framed up the picture to just get the guns and gent’s hands in the shot. Michael grinned up at Geoff smugly.

“Don’t give me that look,” he scolded, knocking Michael’s shoulder with his knee, “anyway I’m guessing this shit is yours,” Michael took the packets, thankful that Geoff had been pretty careful with them since a couple held very intricate wiring and solder that had taken him hours. He saved the first picture, laying the packets out on the floor in front of him, the camera angle meant that he got Ryan’s feet in the shot as well and he couldn’t help but laugh when he spotted what shoes Ryan was wearing.

“Ryan! Seriously dude! Who got you fucking Diet Coke shoes!” he laughed falling back on to the floor. Ryan looked at him then back down at his shoes, a faint blush began burning at his cheeks and not for the first time he was thankful that he was wearing full facepaint.

“Oh erm, Meg got them for me, she said my ‘dad shoes’ needed updating,” he admitted, sneering the last part about his former shoes and placing his shoe on the edge of the table so the rest of the crew could get a good look.

“Everybody does seem to hate your clothing,” Ray pointed out lying next to Michael as he tweeted the two pictures, one with the caption of ‘ _Always working_ ’ to accompany the guns and the other with ‘ _WHAT THE FUCK ARE VAGABOND’S SHOES!?_ ’, before falling back in to a fit of giggles as numerous favourites, retweets and replies sent his phone buzzing.

“Hey I got tighter pants for the people! They should be happy!” he yelled pointing out the tightness of his jeans around his thighs. Everyone shrugged as Michael’s phone bleeped. Michael picked it up, ‘ _@Re4lMogar I think his shoes look pretty great_ ’ from @FreeBrit.

“Oh don’t worry Ry, you’re boyfriends on your side,” he gasped, chucking the phone to Ryan who couldn’t help but grin down at the message.

“Alright alright, if we’re done it looks like its quietened down, we should be good to head back,” Geoff called piling all the stuff back in to the boxes. The crew agreed piling the guns and left over ammunition back in to the bags.

They left, leaving the apartment the way they’d found it and grabbing one of the other cars that held residence in the Drogar car park. Once back out on the road (Jack and Geoff in the front, Ray, Michael and Ryan crushed in to the back) Ray couldn’t help but snap another picture for his twitter feed. Throwing his legs across Michael and Ryan he leant back enough that the city was noticeable through the window, the side and back of Ryan’s skull mask visible as he looked out of the window. Pleased with the shot he cropped it and sent it to it out to the world, ‘Always good to head back home,’ he tweeted grinned to himself as he sat back up and watch the city pass by. It wouldn’t take long for them to be back at the base unless cops got in their way, but they were taking the longer track back anyway, when they did get back however he was going to collapse.

Everyone was slowly draining away, Gavin was forcing himself to stay awake until the team got back, Geoff had sent him a text when they left so he hoped they’d be back soon since he was now running on fumes and caffine. Everyone else seemed to be slowly giving up as well, the car was silent as Michael lent against Ryan’s shoulder enjoying the heat that the older man gave out while Ray secured himself under Michael’s arm, cuddling against him lazily.

They deserved it, they’d been on the go and stressed out for what felt like weeks, emotional trauma did something to the brain that just made them all want to sleep for days on end and forget that they had this life. Even with its ups and downs Geoff couldn’t admit to ever wanting to change it, the times when they were all together and joking and enjoying each others company easily made up for the day to day stress, he just hoped it would last.


	23. Chapter 23

From the information that they’d gathered back from the police it was clear that it hadn’t been any of their team that had picked up Lindsay that evening. There was still a confusion surrounding why Lindsay would work for another team or have to leave in the middle of the night until Ryan burst through the door of their bedroom one evening.

His memory had been coming back, bits and pieces until he was able to make it a continuous line. Gavin had helped him back in to the train cart and then gone up to the driver’s cabin with Lindsay, he didn’t know what Gavin had heard in there except for that he wasn’t meant to as Lindsay kicked him out of the door and off the train, probably hoping that Gavin would hit his head hard enough to forget. So far she’d been right about that judgement as Gavin’s memory wasn’t coming back nearly as quick enough as the others would have liked, what he could remember was that Lindsay had kicked him out of the train but he still struggled with what information Lindsay had been discussing.  
Ryan had gone to confront Lindsay, acting on an impulse and evidently losing when Lindsay had proven to have a lot more skill in hand to hand combat than he’d first thought. She’d kicked him of the train probably hoping for the same out come as Gavin.

Even if Gavin couldn’t remember what information Lindsay had been sharing or who with, the threat on Ryan and Gavin’s lives had been enough for Geoff to completely shut off the case to anyone outside of the main six. The only two that got any information in the slightest were Kdin and Caleb, Geoff had trusted them with his empire for years, a lot longer than this 'M' had been a problem so he found it difficult to not let them help with movements of cargo and mercenary teams.

From that day on however any work that the crew conducted surrounding the rival and her games was kept separate from the rest of the team, Gavin and Geoff’s offices became safe havens they could speak and discuss and check any information over, night weren’t awake in their sleep quarter going over every piece of information that had already been brought to light.

Along with the constant analysis of information and the search for more Ryan was kept on his toes moving team after team of mercenaries about to try and keep them out of harms way since M seemed to have gone quiet. Geoff and Michael weren’t taking any chances either as they pushed to move ordinance and arms around randomly and off record to make sure it wasn’t the next target of her attacks. More and more artillery began to move in to the vaults beneath the base locations, not just the main base but also out to the strip club and gabbling locations, they weren’t usual places to hide the weaponry and it had taken a long time for Geoff and Michael to put it there for fear that it become a target and that there would be sever casualties.

It had become clear from past actions that M would go to any costs to disturb and frighten the crew; they didn’t doubt that killing civilians would faze them in the slightest if it meant taking out a large load of their weaponry, most of which was either fresh in or completely custom.

“I need my workshop back Geoff,” Michael decided one day. They’d been arguing about going back to the apartments for a while. Most of them wanted their own spaces again, they wanted a proper meal and somewhere to relax, while sharing a bed with everybody and having the team together 24/7 was awesome in some cases the lack of person space had started to become a problem.

Relationships flared and flattered, awkward interactions and people refusing to sleep next to each other was starting to get tiring with everybody being in the mix constantly. There was no such thing as privacy anymore. The closest any of them seemed to get to it were Ryan and/or Gavin who would slip away for certain nights when they needed a woman’s touch, sleeping with Meg or Ashley. Hell even Geoff slipped off every so often to spend more time with Griffon only to come slumping back and confessing to Jack who would always insist that he didn’t mind but would never confess to stealing kisses of Caiti, the receptionist.

Stakes, tempers, and testosterone was at a constant high while patients, resources, and time quickly depleted.

That was why Michael was bring this up again. He’d had several bomb and incinerator plans on hold, waiting for more scrap to come in so he could hopefully grab it and do something meaningful with his time, but every bit that came in went straight to the mechanics so Michael didn’t get a single peek at it. He knew there was a ton of stuff and half finished prototypes waiting for him back in the apartments, more importantly his workshop where he also knew where everything was and didn’t risk getting in the way of anyone since he liked to move around a lot while he worked.

“Michael it’s out of the question, it’s just too dangerous for us to go back there,” Geoff answered back for the last time running his eyes over the figures before him.

“Fine then let me go back, grab my shit and then come back here, fuck I can even bring back a few of the custom rides we’ve got lying around there,” he begged, Geoff paused at the mention of his cars. While most of the customs had slowly made their way to the base anyway, or were littering a couple hideouts that had underground garages, there were still more than several waiting for him in the secure garages of the apartments.

“Look if you don’t want me to go alone I’ll grab Gavino and Ryan and get them to come with me, god knows Gavin’s eyes need a rest from those scenes he’s been staring at for days,” Michael said, hoping that the idea of his precious cars being in danger would be enough to the spur the man to his way of thinking.

“Fine, but take with Ray with you as well, he’s a better shot than Gavin if anything happens,” Geoff said looking sideways at Michael who looked as though he was about to argue, “and I don’t care if your sick of your boyfriend’s face or if your fighting over who ate the last of whatever, you take him or you don’t go,” Geoff said sternly.

Michael rolled his eyes and pouted.

“Fine,” he grumbled dragging his feet as he headed toward the door.

“And I want all of you back before it gets dark,” Geoff called after him Michael holding his thumb just high enough for Geoff to see as he disappeared. Placing the papers on his desk Geoff such his head, scraping his fingers through his hair when he heard a low chuckle at his door, looking up to see Jack walking toward him. He gave him a weak smile and sighed.

“You know all this rival business has basically turned you in to an overprotective dad,” Jack chuckled walking behind Geoff and placing his hands on his shoulders, kneading the muscles softly.

“Well someones gotta be, god knows they’d get themselves killed otherwise,” Geoff grumbled moving back in to Jack touch; resting his head against Jack’s arm.

“You should have seen Michael as I passed him, muttering like a pissed off teenager, reminds me of the old days when he first joined us,” Jack continued. Geoff couldn’t help but grin at that as he remembered how impulsive and uncontrollable Michael had been back when he’d first tracked him down. He still hadn’t changed much but hey at least he actually waited for everyone to be out a building before he blew it to pieces or plunged something in to a fiery blaze by accident because he was mixing chemicals at the coffee table, Geoff had lost count of how many hideouts they’d lost through the years before Michael had got his own work space to play in.

Now the guys were heading back there, Ryan and Gavin sat quietly in the back while Ray and Michael continued to bicker over who ate the last of their cereal both ending up pouting out of the windows while Ryan held back a grin of satisfaction.

“You ate it didn’t you,” Gavin whispered to him, acknowledging the piece of shit grin from the corner of his eye.

“Sure did,” Ryan admitted, turning to look at Gavin as he shook his head at the older man, Ryan shrugged, “I’ll get them some more once we’re back, not my fault its all that was in the cupboard,” Gavin shook his head again the smile slipping from his lips as they rounded the final bend. In front of them stood the apartment block had once been a home to the lot, now it seemed foreign and empty, screen of dirt had been allowed to gather on the glass of the windows; various scratches and words etched in to the grim by passers by.

The group shifted in their car as Michael turned at the end of the block, following the alley around to the back of the building where it ramped in to the garage and parking just out of the way of the door. Michael leant forward in his seat squinting up that the building as it reflected the lowering sun,

“Let get moving then I guess, Geoff said he wants us back before it gets too dark,” Michael said ignoring the twist in his stomach at how strange it was to be back. How could a place go from being your home for years to somewhere so unfamiliar in a matter of months? Slowly everyone got out of the car, Ryan and Michael moving to unlock the large steel bars that were secured over the roller each of them grimacing as the metal groaned and creaked in desperate need of oil.

The garage once well light now made out more of a dark cavern as Michael stepped in to it manoeuvring his way around the silhouettes of cars, bikes, vans, trucks, and trailers until he reached the back of the garages and flicked the various light switches. The lights flickered for a moment, a couple blowing after the months of going unused, before shining down on the now slightly dust but no less impressive assortment of vehicles. All together there were around thirty littered about the garage, but out of those thirty there only remained about nine customs.

The plan was to hook up two of the large customs with trailers, that way they’d be able to take at least six back with hopeful ease. They set about quickly picking out the two toughest trucks, Ryan and Michael pulling them in to the back space before tugging the trailers on to the back.

“It’d make sense to have to the lightest on the trailers right?” Michael asked, talking more to himself than the rest of the crew as he stood in the middle of the garage and spinning to look at the various cars.

“Yeah Ray, Ryan do you want to move the Zentorno and the… Z20 on to the trailers and get them strapped down and covered then you guys should be good to go,” Michael decided, Ray moving to the back wall and grabbing the keys for the custom Zentorno, moving it carefully out its space and toward the ramp.

“And what are you gonna do in the mean time?” Ryan asked moving toward the wall of keys.

“Well me and Gav are gonna go grab as much shit as possible from my workshop in to the Bison and the Cognoscenti and then we’ll come back,” Michael explain already heading for the door that would lead toward his workshop that Geoff had had built almost two floors below the apartment block.

“Okay, be careful,” Ryan called after them, Michael waving as he practically pushed Gavin through the door and down the first few steps.

The next hours were spent packing bags and boxes. Various tools, scrape, wiring, prototypes, drawings, notebooks, filled up the back of the armoured Cognoscenti 55 and the truck bed of the Bison. Gavin left most of the prototype and explosive handling to Michael, unsure of what was harmful or could explode if you were too rough with it, and instead chose to shift bundles of wiring and scape and various pieces of crumpled and scrawled paper.

By the time they’d swept one side completely clear Michael was starting to realise something. Half of his designs were missing along with various prototypes, several lots of acids and alkaline that he’d spent a lot of money and time trying to obtain were also yet to be accounted for. He knelt in front of one of the large cupboards pulling out pad after pad of paper and boxes of different sizes, muttering to himself in a confused tone while Gavin continued to move the supplies upstairs and in to the truck.

“Maybe they’re in my apartment?” he mumbled to himself, his brow scrunched tightly as he pushed himself up and toward the door taking the steps two at a time and regretting it once he reached the top as he gasped at the fresh air swirling through the open doors. Dusk was starting to fall, a faint orange lighting up the car park as Gavin moved to tug the large tarp over the back of the Bison.

“Gav! Just running upstairs to grab some stuff from the apartment!” he yelled, Gavin turning and giving Michael a thumbs up in response. Michael threw the gesture back and headed in to the apartments.

The whole reception area was quiet and dark as the dying sunlight struggled to make it through the filth that coated the windows. He tried the elevator, slightly pleased but annoyed that it didn’t seem to be running given that it hadn’t been used in months and could potentially give out at any time if it hadn’t already, and turned toward the fire exit happy that he wasn’t in the penthouse with Geoff but still cursing his lungs as he powered toward the floor he’d once shared with Ray. The door squeaked as he pushed it open echoing along the hallway with his footsteps as he moved quickly toward his room. They needed to get moving soon if Geoff wasn’t going to slaughter him but he didn’t want to leave without the plans and acids, in the wrong hands they were dangerous shit (he would know, he’d come away with several acid burns when he’d grabbed the wrong thing without gloves).

He pushed open the door of his apartment ignoring the unease that curled in his stomach. Searching through the kitchen, the living room, the desk in his bedroom, and all the various cupboards that he’d filled with files rather than food he came up with nothing. And that’s what scared him more and more, most plans (especially the finals) he did keep in his workshop but there was always doodles and notes scattered about his space, kitchen cupboards crammed with files of news paper clippings and internet articles and drawings and notes were now empty. Everything had gone.

He slammed another cupboard, moving back to his bedroom in the hope that the files had some how just moved to there. Maybe he’d done it one night when he was drunk and feeling creative or analytical, pulling open the cupboards and drawers of his desk again as well as those under his bed. He was about to give up and go search through Geoff’s place when a purple post-it note caught his attention as it fluttered across the base of one of the deeper drawers in the underside of his bed. He frowned grabbing it and picking it up; his blood running cold as he became aware of an almost silent beeping coming from the drawer.

‘ _Thanks for the designs – M_ ’

His eyes barely scanned over the bomb before he was running out of the apartment and back down the fire exit, his feet barely landing on the step before they were coming off again and he was barrelling in to the reception, hitting the wall opposite in a failed attempt at stopping.

“Hey, woah, Michael?” Gavin asked coming in to the reception as Michael turned to push himself off the wall.

“Gavin fucking run!” he yelled as the first explosion rang out above them, shaking the building and causing plaster and dust to fall from the ceiling, “Fucking run!” he yelled again, pushing Gavin now as more explosion began echoing toward them, the building shaking and creaking with each. They’d barely stepped out of the reception when the first crash came, the penthouse crumbling down on to the lower floors and pushing everything else down with it.

The pair ran blind as rubble began to litter their path, hitting the cars slowly at first then more and more in large pieces as the ceiling caved in, their only point of view was the garage door and Bison just beyond that, covered in shards of glass and small pieces of rubble at had been pushed off the building as it came down, they jumped in Michael praying that it wouldn’t stall as he pressed hard on the gas and skidded down the alley the sides of the large van skipped off the walls chipping and shredding the paint. They ignored the violent horns and curses that were thrown at them as they skidded to a stop in the centre of the road and watched that last of their home disintegrate in to the pavement, plumes of smoke and dust being spat out from the remains like its final breaths while people stared from alleys and cars and sidewalks.

Sirens leaked through the ringing in Michael’s ears as he fought to control his breathing again. He could hear Gavin trying to get his attention but he sounded miles away, like Michael had his head underwater to muffle the noise

“Michael? Michael we need to move. Michael?” Gavin was almost yelling as he tried to get the others attention, his eyes flicking between the building, the street, and Michael as he sat in shock, the sirens growing closer with each passing second.

“Fuck sake,” he grunted, catching the handle on the underside of Michael’s seat and pushing it backward so he could climb in to the boy’s lap, replacing Michael’s position as driver. Michael didn’t react except for gripping the door and passenger seat and Gavin span them around and headed away from the noise, ignoring the blaring horns as he cut red lights and swerved around other drivers.

Michael still wasn’t completely sure of what was happening until Gavin was speeding around to the car park entrance back at the base, taking off more paint as he scraped through the barely opened security gate and almost slammed head first in to the back wall, stomping on the brake and letting himself slump forward regaining his breath.

After what felt like hours Gavin twisted to face Michael, taking his face between his hands in an attempt to get him to focus.

“Michael? Michael come on, we’re back, come on talk to me please,” he begged. Michael looked at him, his eyes finally focused on Gavin’s face the worry and fear still clear in his eyes as Michael nodded slightly to show he was listening.

“Michael what was that?” Gavin asked, his hands leaving Michael’s face as he pushed a hand through his own hair.

“I… I… they…” Michael couldn’t think, he’d just seen his home blown to pieces, there was nothing for them now, nothing personal for them to go back to once this was over. He shook his head scrubbing at his eyes with his hands and then cursing as he felt his contacts move and scratch as his eye. He took a deep breath, pausing for a couple seconds but still aware that Gavin was watching him worriedly.

With a sigh he looked back up at Gavin, his vision blurred by the now busted contact.

“They have my plans,” he stated, “Incinerators, explosives, acid bombs… they’ve got the lot.” Gavin stared at him, trying to take in the information and come up with a response that could at least try to make it make sense and coming up with nothing.

“Fuck,” he breathed, catching a movement from the corner of his eye as the guys and a couple mechanics came jogging out of the garage entrance toward them.

\-------

It took a while before Michael was settled enough to talk about happened. Ray had helped him move all the stuff they’d managed to pack in to the Bison up to his own shop and stayed while Michael worked through and organised everything. In the meantime Gavin gave Geoff, Jack, and Ryan a basic run down of what had happened, he didn’t know the details like what bomb had been used or how it had been planted, but what he did know was that the apartments were no longer standing and that every personal thing they’d had in there along with any information was either blown to pieces or already in M’d hands.

“So the question is, why didn’t they just blow the place why we were there? Take us all out with it,” Geoff asked grimly looking up from his hands to Ryan who hadn’t moved from behind Gavin his hands on the back of the lad’s chair, moving every so often to touch Gavin’s shoulder when his voice started to shake or he got caught up on a singular detail.

Ryan seemed to keep Gavin grounded and moving forward so he’d stopped questioning their interactions with each other.

“She’s still playing games,” Gavin muttered, leaning back as Ryan shifted to stand beside him.

“She?” he asked looking down at Gavin with a confused look that matched everyone elses.

“Yeah, it’s got to be a woman. If it was a guy they wouldn’t be so careful, they also wouldn’t be hitting things that are purely emotional they’d come straight at us with everything they’ve got,” Gavin explain continuing since no one seemed be questioning his logic, “I mean think about it, if they wanted the empire they would’ve just blown the base and tower and killed everyone in a single sweep, but they’re enjoying this, it’s a game to them. She’s grinding us down one by one by hitting the things that make us who we are-”

“That why she went my explosives, they’re how I made my life, it’s my main connection to Geoff,” Michael intergected, standing in the doorway with Ray at his side they’re finger twined together tightly.

“Exactly, first was Ray’s drug business, then Ryan with his teams, they were responsible for other people’s lives within their separate businesses. Lindsay messed up so she was probably just a loose end to tie up, or prevent you from going after her, but Michael’s main business hit is his explosives,” Gavin tied together looking between each of the members as the information he was spewing pieced itself together in their minds.

“So why destroy our home?” Jack asked. There’d been a lot of stuff in those apartments, most of it personal, priceless, irreplaceable from centuries of life and moving about the world. Pictures of him and Geoff beside some of their greatest artefacts.

“Well it’s a way to hit all of us and made a statement,” Gavin shrugged, he hadn’t quite figured out what M had been trying to accomplish by keeping them in the base, sure it locked them in one place but it wasn’t the worst they could work from here night or day and it meant that they all knew where each other was.

“If it’s someone on the inside they know how tough the close proximity has been on us,” Jack guessed looking at Geoff who sat beside him.

“They’re expecting to tear us apart before the big face off, have us going at each other and not cooperating, or have us start to believe that its one of us that leaking information,” Geoff added, meeting Jack’s gaze and placing his hand in Jack’s, giving it a tight squeeze.

The crew looked around at each other, most of them unsure of this development. The destruction of the base meant they’re was also nowhere to go that wasn’t watched by cameras, that meant little privacy and if M was as good as Gavin was threatening she had the potential to get in to them without anyone noticing.

There was also the curl in all their stomachs as the possibility of one of them being the leak was brought in to the light. Individually they’d all thought it at some point after a fight, it had been brought up by Geoff to Jack more than once and Michael after he had Gavin really started hating each in the first few months of all living together.

 _“None of this started until Gavin joined us, how do we know he wasn’t just a plant?”_ the words rang out clear in Geoff’s head as he thought about it, watching Gavin shrink against Ryan’s side as he placed an arm around Gavin’s shoulders. He looked so small, so afraid, the dark bags beneath his eyes and scruff covering his jaw seemed to have aged him way beyond his years.

 _“He was only one with a real reason to destroy us when it all started,”_

The bomb was one of the Michael’s older designs with a new modification. It was a basic set up, a main bomb that triggered a controlled chain reaction of other explosions that could bring a building crumbling to it’s knees in a less than a minute, it had been hooked to spark and complete the circuit once Michael opened the drawer.

“Thing could have sat there for months and we wouldn’t have known,” Michael grumbled playing with his now empty can of Red Bull, “either way now they’ve got all my old designs and prototypes, as well as a ton of shit that took me years to get together and figure out,” he scrunched his hand to a fist, crushing the can easily and smacking it off the table. Geoff watched him, watched how Ray’s fingers looped around his wrist softly easing his hand away from the can and locking in it his own grip.

“So what do we do?” Gavin asked, Geoff looked at him, he looked on the verge of falling asleep as he leant against Ryan’s shoulder his hand slowly tracing across the skin on Gavin’s arm. Geoff shrugged he didn’t have clue, all they could do was move forward and keep working, keep moving stuff around in the hopes that M didn’t get a chance to grab it and hope that Michael had enough stuff from his workshop to come up with some new toys.

He was going to dismiss everyone when there was an urgent banging on the door, Geoff stood pulling it open as Joel spilled against him. The man was a wreck gasp and nervous and babbling incoherently as he clutched at the fabric of Geoff’s shirt. Geoff grabbed him and hauled him up right grabbing his shoulders as he tried to shake some sense out of him.

“They… they’ve hit… my gold… everything, they’re, they’re they’ve, they… my gold,” he babbled quickly before Geoff pulled his arm back and slapped him firmly across the face, the sound echoing through the quiet room as Joel caught his breath.

He swallowed once before looking back at Geoff with a small nod in thanks, Geoff returned the nod encouraging him to actually say what he needed.

“They’re in the gambling district, they’ve got the whole of our street on lock with every piece of gold and ordinance secured beneath it,” Joel said, his voice still shaking slightly. Geoff stared at him, his hands dropping from Joel’s shoulders as he turned away pushing a hand through his hair.

“What are the police doing about it?” he asked. Joel shook his head,

“Nothing, they’re lined around the outside keeping everyone else out, they’re demanding to see you guys,” Joel’s eye swept around the crew, taking in how tired and done they all looked, Geoff followed his gaze his eyes locking with Jack as he sighed.

“Right evacuate the building and secure it, they’ve already hit the apartments without an intent to kill us, I don’t want anyone caught in the cross fire in case they go for this place as well,” Geoff said, turning his attention back to Joel who gave a quick nod and ran from the room, Geoff closed the door after him turning to look back at his team.

“Why can’t they give us a break,” Michael groaned falling forward in his chair and cushioning his head with his arms. Ray shook his head as he stood, moving slowly behind Michael toward the ammunitions bay, Ryan followed him practically dragging Gavin back to his feet. With a grunt Michael kicked out of his chair sending it skidding across the floor as he too followed taking a small detour to his work shop to grab a few things, it was almost a fifteen-minute car ride to the gambling district, he could throw together a few deadly items in that time.

“I want Kdin posted on a building just out of the district, we’re gonna need a pick up if things get back,” Geoff told Jack as he walked toward the larger man. Jack nodded pulling Geoff to him and placing a firm kiss on his lips, it was filled with desperation and need but Geoff could still feel how tired he was as he kissed Jack back with the same heat.

Leaning their foreheads together Jack paused, meeting Geoff’s eyes through his eyelashes, “When this is over, we’re going away for a long time,” Geoff couldn’t help the small smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth as he kissed him again softly in agreement. They broke apart as Matt’s voice boomed through the building.

“THIS IS A MASS EVACUATION NOTICE. PLEASE REMAIN CALM. EVERYONE MUST LEAVE WITH IN THE NEXT FIVE MINUTES OTHERWISE WE CAN NOT GUARANTEE YOUR SAFETY. YOU SHALL RECEIVE A MESSAGE WHEN YOU CAN RETURN TO COLLECT ANY BELONGINGS. EVERYONE MUST EVACUATE THE BUILDING.” There was a momentary pause before the message began to repeat, echoing along corridors and throughout rooms, hundreds of feet soon echoing along side the announcement as they made their way toward the various doors and exits of the building.

“Let go meet our rival then,” Geoff huffed linking his fingers with Jack’s as they walked toward the vaults where they could hear the rest of the crew grumbling as they loaded up their various weapons. Geoff making his way to the vests as Kdin and Celeb entered, looking around the team who paused to look back in surprise. Geoff caught their eye, the pair grinning as they held out their arms.

“We figured you might want some help with this boss,” Kdin grinned, holding up a set of cargobob keys. Geoff looked at them walking over to the pair and pausing before wrapping his arms around each of their necks, pulling them to him tightly.

“Knew I could count on you,” he mumbled in to their shoulders, pulling back and giving them a small shake, “go get padded up and grab some weapons, we’re driving in but we’ll need someone we can trust in the air with eyes on us,” Kdin and Caleb nodded, moving past the rest of the team to grab what they needed before heading out of the base and driving to the chopper lot.

\-------

“So this going to be a full fire fight then?” Ryan asked cocking a gun against the steering wheel before replacing the safety and letting it fall back in to his lap beside his sawn-off.

“We’ll play it by ear, see what they do and react,” Geoff order, watching Michael tinkering in the back of the van with Ray and Gavin sat uneasily in front of him as he muttered to himself in the low light, Jack too busy sorting through the already packed bags of ammunition and grenades to notice.

“Joel said they’ve got all our locations on lock down so there’s probably next to no chance of us getting Ray to the roof,” Geoff continued as he wormed the van through the packed streets toward the glowing barricade that was made of police cars, some just charred and burning corpses but most still intact besides for a few bullet scrapes.

As they approached the south of the barricade a police man flagged them to stop, wandering to the driver’s seat where Ryan was sat with his mask on and a sawn-off shot gun waiting in his lap. The police officer knocked on the blacked out window once Ryan rolled the van to a stop, sliding the glass slowly down as the officer started speaking.

“I’m sorry sir you can’t pass through here this is a, controlled, situ...” his words faded in to nothing as Ryan turned his skull mask toward them, the gun barrel sliding in to view and perching on the door to line up almost perfectly with the officer’s head.

“I think you’ll find a way to let us through,” Ryan said, his voice deep and sarcastic as the officer slowly reached his hands up, backing away from the vehicle as he reached for his radio, Ryan stayed watching him as he told his fellow officers just who was in the van. Slowly the various cars and vans began to part, leaving just enough room for the crew’s van to slip through on to the empty street.


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope that everyone had a great new year, Happy 2016 to you all.  
> Heres to me hopefully finally finishing thing, hadn't realised I'd been working on it since August... oops

The streets were silent as Ryan drove down them; Geoff sat stiff and on edge beside him, aware of every small movement and the shifting of the other crew members behind him as they strained to look out of the windshield.

Few corpses lay scattered about the sidewalk but it was clear that most of those that had been gunned down and killed had been moved in to the blown out openings of the various bars, clubs, gambling rings, and pawn stores as blood puddles and streaks still sat atop the stone work. Just off the main street you could see the vans, dozens of them in total, each one black and armoured some had the back doors open a couple masked enemies perched on the rear bumper with their guns and knives in hand. Geoff barely spared them a glace as they approached the biggest blockade in their path, close to the strip club that had been Geoff’s second base, one that he shared a close bond with Joel as it brought in a continuous stream of money and was a good basement hold for ordinance. 

In front of it sat a blockade of the three cars, two armoured and mean looking with slit windows and lines of thick armour beneath a matt black paint job. The third was a sleek Fusilade, shaded windows protected those inside from the prying eyes of passers by. A Bati 800 sat beside it a rider on it’s back dressed head-to-toe in black leather with a blacked out helmet covering their face, the vents on top of the helmet were pointed, creating a look of cat ears protruding from the plastic.

As Ryan brought the crew’s van to a halt a whole manner of animals seemed to emerge from the shadows, gathering around and sitting on top of the armoured cars but not touching the shining paint of the Fusilade as the woman on the bike tapped on the back window before turning her blank gaze toward the crew’s van.

Ryan switched off the van, leaving the key in as he and Geoff climbed out, the rest of the crew clambering out the back and letting themselves drop to the ground; masks covering their faces and guns in hand ready for a fire fight. Michael shifted his bag of quickly assembled explosives on to his back, moving carefully as he followed behind Jack and Ray, Gavin in-step behind himself. The four stopped beside the other two. Geoff and Jack standing slightly in front as Ryan and Gavin fell to their right with Michael and Ray on the left, their grips tightening and loosening on the handles of their guns as the various animal faced enemies shifted in front of them but almost instantly stilling as the door of the Fusilade clicked open and a woman climbed out.

She was average height with coffee coloured skin and black hair that hung in gentle, purple tipped, swirls to her shoulders. She was dressed casually compared to some of her army, and that of Geoff’s suit and tie, with leather style leggings that hugged her toned legs and a large blue blouse that hung to her hips covering the flowing white vest top beneath it. A pistol hung from a holster at her hip while a knife was slipped in to an outer compartment of her knee high boots. Large reflective aviators covered her eyes, reflecting the image of the crew back at themselves as she stepped to the middle of the army that had surrounded them, the biker girl and doe headed one on her right while the white rabbit and black puma (its lips curled in to a snarl) stalked on her left.

Ray felt a sense of da-ja-vu sweep across him as he looked over the black and purple hair of the woman. He’d seen her before and suddenly things were clicking in to place, he’d seen Lindsay talking with her in downtown outside of a strip club that was rarely used but close enough that it was practically in the centre of Ramsey’s downtown territory. Lindsay had been in with this woman for a long time, and now he didn’t doubt that the woman in the cat eared helmet was Lindsay herself.

The five women stopped a few feet from the crew, far enough away that you’d have a decent space to move across if you wanted to grab someone but close enough that their voice were barely raised, but still enough to echo through the empty streets. Everything seemed quiet here, the usual roar of the city seemed to have faded in to an abis; blocked out by the surrounding buildings and ring of cop cars that blocked them from the rest of the city.

“Nice to finally meet you officially Geoff,” the black haired woman smiled, her deep purple lips pulling back over clean white teeth.

“If you’d wanted a meeting you didn’t have to kill of half my guys, destroy my home, and send my banker in to a mental break down,” Geoff said, his voice calm but edged with authority, “and it’s Ramsey to you, M,”.

M’s smiled grew larger as she let out a small laugh, her stance changing so that her hip cocked out and most of her weight sat on one leg, her arms crossed beneath her breasts.

“Oh come on Geoff, we’re all friends here, hey you can even call me Mica,” she laughed, taking a few steps forward and offering her hand toward Geoff who glared between her and it in disgust.

“What do you want Mica?” he spat, his grip tightening on the gun in his hand, ready to blow a hole straight through her chest of she took another step.

Mica stopped, looking hurt as she lowered her hand. He voice becoming soft and laced with a sly venom that caused shivers to scattered down the various spines of the Fake AH Crew.

“Oh isn’t it obvious by now Geoff, I expect you to grow that weak that you accept death. I want you to beg me for it, beg me for that sweet release that you have been denied for centuries and in turned denied most if not every person you have roped in to your pathetic team. And then when you’re dead Achievement City will be mine, and I will run your stupid little name in to the ground.” She stared at Geoff, her gaze unfaltering as he fought to control the anger bubbling inside of him. He could feel the other’s anger rolling off them in waves as they tried to stay composed at his sides.

After a breath Geoff went to reply but his voice was cut but a low, deadly chuckling from his right. Everyone turned to look as Ryan’s shoulders shook beneath his thick leather, the laugh muffled by the plastic of his mask as it became more manic. Beside him Gavin had moved back slightly, his eyes wide and unashamedly showing a fear that crept from inside him.

“You talk to much,” he snapped, raising the shot gun he’d been holding and firing a single shot through Mica’s chest.

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion after that. As Mica crumpled to the floor, the team instantly split, Michael and Ray aimed for an alley on the left side, hoping to gain access to a rooftop since they hadn’t noticed anyone stalking around up there while Gavin had yanked Ryan toward a couple of abandoned cars that had ploughed across the sidewalk and in to the front of buildings with the hope that no one on M’s team had chose to camp in there. With no other choices Geoff and Jack had ducked back toward the van, pulling open the doors and mainly using them as cover as bullets began raining from the army that had gathered around them.

“Fuck sake!” Geoff cursed as he shot around and through the gaps in the door frame, “why the fuck did Ryan shoot?”

“'Cause, you would have done it otherwise!” Jack yelled back. Geoff, glances over the seats at him and shrugged as Jack gave him a knowing look before ducking just enough that another bullet pinged off the frame work beside his head.

In mean time Michael and Ray had managed to take out most of their own competition on the way to a fire escape that would take them to the second story roof of a small gambling bar, from there Ray had set himself up a quick sniping post, using the air vents as cover every time someone tried to pin point where he was. Michael on the other had managed to jump across to the strip club beside him, using the bright pink neon sign as cover he began to litter the balled up armies with explosives. The building raining, bullets, grenades, the occasional Molotov, and Michael own devices that made quick work of the armies as glass and metal shards punctured and torn at the flesh of legs and arms. He only moved out of cover when he noticed the large groups coming back up the street from the south, chancing his run across Ray’s building and jumping to the next as he yelled down to Geoff and Jack.

“Watch your backs gents!” he screamed, pulling his arm back and letting another grenade fly, hitting a couple of the cars just down from where Ryan and Gavin were still held up.

“Get you and Ray out of here!” Geoff yelled back. Michael didn’t wait to set off the bright green flare that would signal Kdin and Caleb to come and grab them and within seconds the helicopter was hovering above them, unable to land on top of the building it hovered just at it’s backside staying out of most of the bullet fire as Ray and Michael made their jumps in to it the back.

As the chopper pulled away, and Michael yelled instructions to Kdin he spotted Geoff jumping in to the driver’s seat of the van as Jack yelled to Ryan and Gavin, giving pair as much cover as he could the two piled in to the passenger side seat, falling over the back of the seat and in to the rear of the van, locking the two back doors as Geoff torn the van in to a tight ring, taking out a few of the guys that had been closing in on them with the back bumper. The two vehicles torn off, gun fire still coming from the windows of the van and sides of the chopper but too soon the barricade of cop and swat vehicles emerged from the buildings.

“Get us over those cop cars!” Michael yelled rooting in his bag, he was almost all out of explosives.

“There’s’ a couple high powered in the netting!” Caleb yelled pointing to a large knapsack that was screwed in to the cargo netting of the helicopter. Michael wasted know time in crawling over to it, reaching in and pulling out two of their most explosive grenades. Brilliant green with a bright red head, clip, and pin the pieces had been worked on for months before they were safe enough carry around in rough conditions such as the chopper.

Michael grinned, as he re-clipped himself to the side of the chopper and hung off the side, pulling out the pins and letting the explosives fall just as they passed over the barricade, three cars thick that instantly turned in to a ball of fire and smoke. Geoff barrelling through the wreckage under a minute later with the biker and several other vans in hot pursuit.

“You guys need to get ahead, we can pick you up and head out to Die Insel,” Kdin called in to his headset’s microphone, knowing that it transmitted through to the van.

Geoff grunted at the radio, skidding as a bullet shattered his side mirror. Get ahead? What did Kdin think he was trying to do? They needed to get out of the city, but that was a lot easier said than done when every single Paul, Dick, and Harry was after you with bullets, sirens, and enough man power to drive you off a cliff.

“ _Off a cliff!_ ” Geoff thought suddenly, shots still rattled out behind him from where Gavin and Ryan had busted the back windows and were shooting out of them while Jack aimed for anyone that got up their inside. They were still way to close to the inland, they’d have to throw a loop and how they got on the interstate. There was a road that took them out toward the cliffs, if they didn’t get ahead quick enough out there they always had the last ditch attempt of drive the van off the cliff, they’d survive it for sure.

Pulling a sharp left Geoff circled them back around, barely making it on to the ramp that led them on to the interstate as cars screeched, honked, and cursed behind him.

“Geoff what the fuck?” Jack yelled, regaining his balance in his seat and staring at his boss as he hunched low to the steering wheel.

“We’re heading for the cliffs, we either need to get ahead out of the city or make the jump and then clamber in to the chopper from the ocean,” Geoff explained cringing as a bullet hit his window just enough to bust the glass, “fuck,” he muttered, pressing his foot flatter against the gas pedal to the point that he could probably bust it straight through the ground.

“You’re fucking mental,” Jack muttered, but dropped the argument as another bullet shattered his own window from beside them. Jack turned firing to shots and taking out the driver whose car skidded and span, grinding against the cement barrier with a flurry of sparks.

The collision gave the van enough time to pick up speed on the ramp down on to the cliff road that curved around toward the cliff before circling back past the army base and toward the desert. Jack paused for enough time to grab the microphone from the radio.

“Kdin we’re aiming for the break off on this road, next left, get ahead, get ready,” Jack ordered.

“Copy that,” came Kdin’s voice from the helicopter, as he moved ahead of the van, it’s shadow passing over the vehicle and hovering around the turn-off. Geoff continued to speed toward them, slowing just enough that the van wouldn’t roll as he took the bend, but aware that Ryan and Gavin were still firing the occasional shot behind them.

“Right lads fucking move!” Geoff yelled as he skidded toward the helicopter, barely waiting for the vehicle’s dust to settle before he was jumping out and ducking low, jumping in Michael’s side and fastening himself to the side with Gavin while Ryan and Jack locked themselves in the other side.

“Ray!” Michael yelled Kdin began to lift off again. The lad turned, just in time to catch the grenade that Michael had thrown to him. Pulling the pin and throwing it in to the open door of the van, the breeze barely catching his skin as Kdin pulled off with the small clattered of bullets against his tail.

Michael and Ray continued to shoot until they were out over the safety of the ocean, it was only then that they leant back and pulled the doors shut twisting in their harnesses until they were comfy again.

“Well that was fun,” Michael breathed, leaning his head back against the metal inside of the chopper.

“Yeah but lets not do it again any time soon,” Gavin grumbled, letting his fingers play over the scrapes in his skin where a bullet had got a little too close, the scariest being across his cheek bone. The bullet had taken a little off the top of his ear and caused the hair to matt together with blood, but otherwise it was a small price to play since it could have gone straight through his eye.

“I don’t think we’re gonna have much of a choice,” Geoff muttered poking at a hole in his jacket and shirt before pulling the bullet from the vest that he’d been wearing, thankful that the bullet was embedded there rather than his gut.

\-------

The shot hit Mica, sending her stumbling backward before crumbling to the floor and erupting a hail of bullets from behind as the crew split up and dived out of the way. Every one ducked, Lindsay ordering Ashely to help her with Mica as they carried her back to the car while the others covered them along with every other member of their crew.

“Get her the fuck out of here!” Lindsay ordered, her voice muffled beneath the helmet as the ground shook from the first explosion. Barbara nodded jumping in the driver’s seat while Ashley laid Mica in the back, stripping of her shirt to try and stop some of the bleeding.

“They’re on the roof!” someone from the team cried out as another explosion rang out near them, several cries of pain following close behind. Shot spat and ping off cars and vans as they shifted position so that Barbara could get out of the street quickly. Lindsay paused until the car span around a corner, climbing on top of one of the vans and taking aim at where Ryan and Gavin were pinned down, their bodies barely covered by the bent metal of a couple cars.

“Watch your backs gents!”

“Get you and Ray out of here!”

Lindsay looked to where Michael was stood on one of the roofs to her right, his curly hair shifting in the wind as he yelled over the edge down to Geoff who was busy hiding like a coward behind the door of their van. Lindsay took aim as Michael lit off a brilliant green flare, the smoke raising high in the air as she began to fire, but Ray was still up there with him, a pain shot through her hand as a bullet punctured her glove and she cried out stumbling slighting before sliding off the roof of the van.

“That fucker,” she hissed pulling off her glove and letting the blood drip off her fingers as she pressed against the bullet through her palm. The handle of the gun had stopped it being a through-and-through but that didn’t mean it hurt any less as she wiggled the bullet back out of the back of her hand. She fought the urge to throw up as she stumbled over to the edge of the barricade, now the sound of rotors could be heard amongst the good fire and sure enough a large brown cargo bob was hovering just off the back of one of the buildings, fighting to stay the same height as she spotted Michael climb in.

“Two of them are the in chopper, get ready to move!” Lindsay yelled to one group; racing over to the other side to make sure that they also got the message as Jack popped out from behind the door of Fake AH’s van sending bullets ricocheting off vans as he covered Ryan and Gavin as they ran toward the van and ungracefully jumped in.

Lindsay cursed them as the van started up and span around, taking a few of those that had been closet to the van trying to take out the tires. A couple of vans that were ready took after them, their wheels leaving smoke as Lindsay climbed back on her motor bike and sped after them. She weaved behind the vans glancing every now and again at the cargo bob that was still firing bullets at her and her team. They’d be at the barricade within seconds though, she could already see the first few lights spinning in front of them, and their van was too battered to just plough straight through it. She hadn’t noticed the cargo bob fly ahead however as the red topped grenade fell from the aircraft and landed amongst the cars, blowing and sending a firey ball to fill the space before them, the brightness of it cause Lindsay to flinch and swerve slightly before letting out a grunt of frustration and knocking the bike up a gear as she pushed past the front van and through the burning wreckage of police and SWAT vans.

It was clear that Fake AH weren’t going down without a fight as Gavin and Ryan busted out the small windows in doors at the back of the van, causing her to skid and swerve constantly to avoid a shot that would either knock her off her bike or managed to hit her tires.

“Team Haus, fucking get up there and get that vehicle off the road!” Lindsay yelled in to the mic that was inside her helmet.

“You got it boss,” came Kovic’s voice as their van creeped from behind her, pulling up her right side with James hanging out of the passenger window with Bruce and Adam hanging out of the side doors.

“Oh shit!” Joel cursed slamming on the break as Fake AH took a quick turn backward and on to the interstate, Lindsay skidded just behind them, missing the interstate and stalling her bike as Joel turned after them. Restarting after them, Lindsay caught up just in time to see Jack reach out and fire toward Fun Haus’s van, the bullet penetrating the glass and hitting Joel in the chest and head, sending it skidding in to the concrete divide, sparks flying as another van joined the back of it and other cars span to try and avoid it. Lindsay barely paused as she swerved between cars and made it on to the opposite side of the road in to on coming traffic which was already being pushed out of the way by a few remaining police cars, but it was useless as Fake AH turned of the highway and toward the cliffs, the cargo bob still flying just head of them. Not taking a second to think about it, Lindsay jumped the divide, narrowly avoiding the few cars that had made it past the wreckage, and followed down the turn off. 

She was a couple yards back now, just able to make out the break lights of the van as it took another sharp bend toward the flashing lights of the cargo bob as it hovered just above the land. She stopped at the turn, watching the crew run out and clamber in to the helicopter, Ray hanging out of the side as he threw something toward the van and it too erupted in to a ball of flame and heat that caused Lindsay to flinch slightly. She stood watching their aircraft disappear in to the darkness until she heard the sirens closing in on her location.

Making a deal with the police was all well and good… when you held up your end of the bargain… and with The Fake AH somehow making another getaway that meant she’d be in trouble if the police got a hold of her. Spinning her bike away from the noise she set off again following the road as it circled back around and past the military base, thankful that her own base wasn’t far from that road as it nestled just on the edge of the desert. The rest of the team could take care of themselves, Joel was dead but if the rest of Fun Haus had made it then they’d have to come back to Mica full time, there was no way they’d be able to go back to Ramsey now not with Joel dead by his hand.

No, this was war now, Ryan had ensured that by firing the first shot. He was going to regret it, he was going to regret everything when the truth came out they all were, Geoff Ramsey was going to realise that he really had no one in this world that he could trust.


	25. Chapter 25

“Why the fuck did you even fire Ryan!” Gavin yelled through the house as Jack attempted to clean out the already healing mess of his ear and the gouge on his cheek, the lad’s face held firmly between Jack’s fingers to prevent him from fully turning to yell at Ryan who was busy cleaning off his face paint in the kitchen sink.

The argument had been going since they’d got to Die Insel and started discussing what had happened. Almost all the team had got away with minimal injuries, a few scrapes and bruises, Gavin had got the worst of it with a busted ear but overall everyone had been fine.

“Because If I hadn’t Geoff would’ve!” Ryan yelled back walking in to the living room with a small towel in his hands and black grease paint still lining his eyes slightly while red still clung to his temples and black stuck to the stubble across his jaw.

“Ryan you caused us to lose every piece of ordinance and every piece of Joel Hayman’s precious fucking expense that we had in those locations! Not to mention the territory we've probably just lost to her,” Geoff snarled from where he was hunched over the laptop that Kdin had in the chopper.

“You’re telling me that after she fucking insulted you like that you didn’t want to shoot that smug bitch in the fucking chest!” Ryan scoffed rubbing at the remaining grease paint on his face and ruining the towel.

“Of course I fucking wanted to but I didn’t!” Geoff argued, standing and closing the couple steps between himself and Ryan.

“Will the pair of you stop!” Jack yelled across the room, releasing Gavin’s face and standing as the pair measured each other up, “seriously we’ve just been openly attacked by a woman that is clearly way more psychotic and has way more man power than we ever imagined, and you two want to kill each other for her? Just stop it,” Geoff and Ryan stayed staring at each other for several beats, the tension clear between them as Geoff shook his head and pushed past Ryan, the younger gent clearly holding back from pushing in to Geoff’s back as he stalked away heading out of the front door to get some air.

Ryan sighed as Jack headed after Geoff leaving Gavin alone in the living room looking at his mangled ear and tugging at some of the dried blood that had stuck in his hair. Ryan took the stool that Jack had been sitting on reaching out to try and turn Gavin’s head so he could get a better look at his injury.

“Ryan, don’t,” Gavin warned, pushing his hand away softly as he stood up and moved toward the bedrooms and bathroom, “I’m going to get cleaned up, you sort your shit out with Geoff,” he said, pausing for a second but not turning to look at Ryan before he disappeared down the hall, pushing the door open to one of the bedrooms where Michael and Ray were sat on the bed talking quietly. When they looked at him Gavin just shook his head, passing them and walking in to the small en-suit bathroom to shower and get the dried blood out of his hair and the remaining grime off his skin.

\-------

Geoff sighed leaning against the rail of the porch as he let the fresh dusk air wash over his skin, the hairs on his forearms prickling against the cold. Off to his left he could hear Kdin and Caleb running over their last checks of the cargo bob before they loaded up and headed back toward the base, they had been intent on staying but this place was going to be cramped enough with six people and Geoff decided that he needed people he could trust back at the main location since there was going to be a lot of backlash over how much they’d just lost and he was confident that Kdin and Caleb would be able to handle it.

He was running over who he actually did trust when Jack came out after him, the door clicking quietly before Jack’s solid arms were wrapped around Geoff’s waist, pulling him back against his chest.

“Don’t let him get to you,” he murmured in Geoff’s ear feeling him relax slightly as he leant back against him.

“He’s impulsive, it’s gonna be the end of us if he can’t control it,” Geoff muttered.

“Yeah but you knew that when you hired him,” Jack chuckled nuzzling softly at Geoff’s neck. Geoff couldn’t argue with that, The Mad King had always been impulsive when he was on his own, but he’d also been careful that was how he’d got away with everything for so long. That safety had transferred to the crew when he’d joined, the most impulsive things he did was say fuck it to stealth or blow up a load bearing wall that narrowly missed crushing everyone in Geoff’s team but also managed to wipe out a lot of the enemy in the process.

But now, with all the pressure Ryan had been getting more and more uncontrollable, this most recent act really could have consequences since he’d pretty much proved that he still thought for himself rather than listen to Geoff’s orders or follow his lead. If he wasn’t careful Mica could probably end up using him against them, she was smart; sadistic. The comparisons made between her and Ryan’s characters made him shiver slightly. They were emerging as too alike and that was starting to scare Geoff, what made it worse is that he was pretty sure Ryan was completely oblivious to the comparisons.

“Hey Geoff!” Kdin called as he and Caleb approached them. Geoff shifted, stepping out of Jack’s embrace slightly so that Jack’s hands just rested on his hips, “we’re good to head back if you still want us to go,” he asked standing just below the pair. Geoff couldn’t help the small smile that tugged at the edges of his mouth, he’d always be thankful for Kdin and Caleb, they’d be the first people to earn the full trust of Geoff (other than Jack of course) and Geoff was pretty sure he could trust them with his life. He trusted them enough with his business that if anything happened to him or Jack he already had a message set up naming them the ‘heirs’ of the empire, much to the displease of Burnie, Joel, and Gus who had also been there when he first began his empire in Achievement City.

“Yeah you guys go, I need some eyes and ears I can trust back at the base. We’ll take the boats back in a couple days, maybe sooner if tensions don’t let up here,” he half joked. Living together in the base was one thing but trying to stay more than a couple days in a house that barely had two bedrooms and practically no place to get away was more than a challenge, at least at the base they could split far enough enough apart that they could concentrate on a single thing and the longer they were stuck together the more everyone seemed to take advantage of that.

“Alright then, we’ll stay in touch, stay safe boss,” Kdin smiled turning back toward the helicopter.

“You too guys, let me know who shows back up when you reopen the base,” Geoff called after them, Caleb throwing him a thumbs up as he climbed in to the back of the cargo bob locking the door behind him, while Kdin climbed in to the pilot’s seat. 

Geoff and Jack stayed on the porch as the helicopter lifted off and turned back out over the ocean, they were only a few hours from the shores of Achievement City but Die Insel felt so far removed that it sometimes took a little time to remember that. The weather and swells that crowded the gap between here and the main land could get dangerous, that had been one reason that the lads had got trapped here during their ordinance delivery.

“Come on it’s getting dark, we need to sort out the watch rotor, better safe than sorry,” Jack encouraged tugging lightly at Geoff’s shirt and planting a soft kiss on his shoulder. Geoff nodded, taking one of Jack’s hands from his hip and holding it in his own as they went back inside.

It was mainly quiet inside, Ryan was nowhere to be seen; Michael and Ray were sat in the kitchen munching on a couple sandwiches as they spoke quietly while Gavin was sat on one of the couches that he’d pulled closer to the heater, messing about with laptop, his hair still slightly damp from the shower and a large woollen blanket pulled around his shoulders.

“Where’s Ryan?” Geoff asked standing between the two locations, all three lads pointed toward the bedrooms, Michael swallowing his bite of sandwich before speaking.

“Said he’d take the midnight shift until whenever.” Geoff took a deep breath, looking at Jack who shrugged, they couldn’t really argue if Ryan wanted to be petty and avoid them all.

“Alright, one of you alright to take the first shift?” he asked.

Michael nodded, raising his hand slightly, “No problem, I’ll got out at six, looks like it’s already getting pretty dark,” Geoff nodded, thinking for a moment.

“Ray you okay to take three till six?” Ray nodded, wiping some of the mayo that had caught in the corners of his mouth, “Alright I’ll take over at six, we’ll work out day shifts tomorrow if we don't end up going back,” Geoff decided. The pair nodded finishing off their sandwiches as they both slipped outside grabbing their guns from beside the door as they left.

Gavin stayed quiet, barely reacting when Geoff and Jack came to join him the living room; Jack checking the dressing that he’d placed over his busted ear since it had started bleeding again once he’d got out of the shower. Geoff didn’t question his silence, as he watched him worked, his fingers skipping over the keys of the laptop each click lulling him in to a light sleep as he leant in to Jack’s side. He didn’t wake again until ten when Jack shifted behind him.

“Coming to bed?” he asked, Geoff nodded sleepily, stretching and feeling his back pop from the uncomfortable position he’d taken up against Jack’s side on the too small couch, looking around he noticed that they were only ones in the living room, the laptop sat whirring and sighing quietly on the coffee table.

“Where’s Gavin?” he asked, his voice croaky.

Jack gestured toward the front door, “went out to keep watch with Michael and Ray,” Geoff nodded twisting to look toward the door as Jack stood, offering him a hand. Geoff took it stretching again once he was stood.

“I’m just gonna go check on the lads, let them know that we’re gonna get some shut eye and remind them to wake up Ryan at twelve,” Geoff decided, moving toward the front door while Jack made for the bedroom that Ryan wasn’t in.

Once outside the cold air bit away any warmth that Geoff had managed to get in to his bones while inside. The porch was empty as was the front lawn and garage area but he could hear the lads talking quietly amongst themselves above him. He sat on the steps on the porch just listening as they joked, laughing about how Ray had put a bullet through the biker girl’s hand and how Michael had managed to make some of his most effective explosives in less than fifteen minutes.They paused in silence after that, their chuckles fading away in to the distant sound of the ocean.

“You think Ryan shooting their boss is gonna bite us in the ass?” Ray asked, his voice grave. He knew the answer he just hoped that he was wrong.

“I don’t see how it can’t you saw how the rest of them reacted once she hit the floor,” Gavin said. Geoff could almost see his face in his mind, drawn out and tired with bags beneath his eyes as he sat hunched over; his arms wrapped around the tops of his knees wile the grip on his converse stopped him from sliding off the roof.

“If she’s dead the biker will definitely take over, she’s definitely not letting us get away without a fight,” Michael added, rolling his shoulders as he straightened his back against Ray’s at the top of the roof, gun hanging loosely in his fist as his arms stretched out, his elbows resting on his knees.

“If?” Gavin asked twisting to look up at the pair as they sat back to back.

“We're all immortal, Ryan by his own right, Lindsay was…is by her own… whose to say Mica isn’t either,” Ray clarified, turning slightly toward Gavin, being careful not to shove Michael too much.

“I guess so,” Gavin said, his voice defeated as he thought about it. How could he be so naïve? If Geoff could transfer his immortality to others who could say that Lindsay couldn’t or hadn’t? None of them knew how long she’d been working with this other team; it could have been centuries for all they knew.

As they fell in to silence Geoff pushed himself off the steps, walking the few steps out until he could see the roof, sure enough they’d heard him push up and had all turned to watch the lawn expectantly, their guns drawn and ready as a precaution.

“How you guys doing out here?” Geoff asked, his voice loud against the backdrop of the night.

“We’re good, everythings quiet so far,” Michael said.

The rest of the evening was quiet. Ryan came out at midnight as promised and the lads retreated back inside, Michael and Ray taking up the bed he’d left while Gavin returned to what he’d been working on at the laptop. He’d gotten in to the main base’s data so many times that he no longer needed wifi or the information he had saved in a conscious part of his brain, now it was just unconscious muscle memory that got him in to the base cameras and information data base.

He was tired, sleep tugging at his eyelids every time he blinked but he couldn’t sleep, as much as he wanted to go and curl up beside Michael and Ray he just couldn’t bring himself to completely sleep not with just Ryan on watch.

Gavin trusted Ryan, of course he did, but he knew he wasn’t the only one that had noticed how impulsive Ryan was becoming and the whole thing was quickly interesting Gavin more than it probably should of. Now he was scouring through records to try and find out more information, there had to have been a reason that Geoff had hired Ryan back when he’d first showed up, and Gavin was sure it couldn’t have just been down to his past titles.

\-------

“Hey Gav,” Ray called quietly as he stepped in to the main body of the house, tugging his purple hoodie and hat combination on. Gavin turned suddenly aware that he’d been slowly dozing as his neck clicked back in to place, “I’m just going on watch if you wanna get in bed with Michael, probably a lot comfier than the couch,” Gavin thought for a moment, looking back at the glowing pixels in front of him. He’d somehow made it from the The Fake AH database to a fan site,  
‘ _The Vagabond and His Many Aliases_ ’ the text just wasn’t making sense anymore so with a reluctant nod, he closed the laptop and stumbled in to an upright position, his blanket still tucked around his shoulders as he shuffled toward the bedroom.

“Sleep well buddy, see you in a few hours,” Ray called after him, grabbing his sniper rifle from beside the front door as Ryan pushed it open, before disappearing back in to the night as he took his spot back on the roof.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this ones so short... the story is slowly coming together in my head and soon it shall be over.


	26. Chapter 26

By seven the next morning the awkwardness had returned. Ryan seemed even more irritated than he had been yesterday, constantly avoiding eye contact with anyone or keeping himself busy away from everyone else, he spent most of his day at the dock preparing the boats for when Geoff decided they needed to go back.

Gavin ran the base via the laptop that he’d been messing with, giving anyone that would listen to him a constant run down of who was in and who was where. As promised Kdin and Caleb had returned and were on a constant move throughout the base, most people had returned and it seemed like everything was running as normal as ever, Ashley and Meg still seemed on the constant search for information while the Funhaus team were no where in sight and for the time being Gavin kept that information to himself. The last thing he needed was for Geoff to start accusing everyone on the intel teams of being against him, it was bad enough that Lindsay had become a positive trail of deceit, he didn’t want to cast anyone else in to the same pit until he was sure. All the surveillance teams were kept busy, watching the city and trying to re-establish a connection with the properties they’d lost in the gambling quarter.

As guessed Joel was a lot less than happy at losing his precious merchandise, but he wasn’t the only one, Michael spent the time that he wasn’t on watch speaking with Griffon and the guys in the ammunitions department trying to get a catalogue of everything that had been hidden in the area. Most of it, while expensive, was replaceable with the amount of funds they had left but some pieces had been either built from scratch or modified completely making them rear irreplaceable.

When Ryan did finally return, it was getting in to the late afternoon and Jack seemed the only one that could get anything out of him since it was he that Ryan went to to tell that the boats were ready to go when they were. Jack had of course instantly relayed the message to Geoff who, sick of the awkwardness within the house hold decided that it was time for them to leave.

“Ray, Michael, Ryan you guys take the Toro Jack, Gavin, and me will take the Speeder, meet up at the docks on the south-west edge. You guys can decide amongst yourselves who drives,” Geoff order, Ryan moving to lower the Toro in to the water without argument. None of the crew chose to question it as they moved about, loading up the various weapons they’d kept with them in to the waterproof compartments aboard the boats and climbing in.

\-------

Geoff had already arranged for a pick up once they arrived at the docks so it wasn’t a surprise when they pulled in to the darkness of the docking yard to see the classic Fake AH Roosevelt waiting for them with Caleb leaning beside it.

“We’re trying to hide from a psycho and Caleb brings the biggest, most conspicuous car we own, okay then,” Ryan muttered under his breath as he followed the rest off the team out of their docking building.

Gavin paused slightly as he thought about saying something before deciding against it and just shaking his head at the gent. It wasn’t like you could transport six people that easily unless it was a van and given the current circumstance most of those had either been destroy or were still in the workshop being fixed.

“Hey Geoff, sorry I couldn’t grab anything bigger,” Caleb apologised as they got close. Geoff shrugged.

“You did what you could, we can smush the lads in the back, Jack, Ryan, you guys mind hanging on the sides?” Geoff asked turning to the two broader guys as they finished backing the trunk and carry box with the various artillery; the lads climbing happily in to the back of the car, arguing only slightly about who had to sit in the middle before deciding that Ray was the slimmest, the pair nodded, Ryan slamming the backdoor beside Gavin and making him squawk before climbing on.

Jack exchanged an annoyed look with Geoff before pulling the black face protector over his face so that he didn’t get pelted with various bits of city crap and flies while Geoff climbed in to the passenger seat beside Caleb.

The ride back was a fair way about half an hour on the coastal road before they hit the smaller military base that they were lucky enough to own part of, after that it was another long half an hour of nothing until they hit the far south of the city. They’d have to go round the couple of mountain ranges that separated the city block from the majority of down town and the original areas and that’s what would take longer and be the most dangerous until they got to the base. The road through the city would take them close to the old, now destroyed, apartments as they cut through the safe area there.  
They been on the road for barely five minutes when they noticed that the road was strangely quiet, fair enough that it was a road less travelled and as it lead to no where except the docks and desert after that before it looped back around, and it was getting close to the early evening with sun barely gripping at the horizon, but even for that the road was quiet. Empty. There were no other cars, no bikes, not even the usual hitch-hikers that seemed to line the roads between the desert and the city.

The absence of others was what set the crew on edge, even more so when two bikers zipped past them on either side, the pair barely slowly as they sped close to Jack and Ryan. The car continued as the bikes vanished in to the horizon when Caleb spotted something.

Up ahead was a lot darker than it should have been, the faint silhouette of vehicles emerging from the heat waves as they crept out of the road.

“You might want to get ready to jump out,” Caleb warned as they come closer, the vehicles that were no doubt vans looming ever nearer while the two bikers that had passed before now circled right back at them only this time they weren’t wearing the basic black helmets. They’re heads now replaced with that of an eagle and the all to commonly seen grey cat, it’s garish pink eyes looking every which way but forward as they ploughed toward the Roosevelt.

“Geoff, as soon they pass your door jump, I don’t doubt that if they get close enough Ryan and Jack will make a grab for them. Gavin, Michael, you guys need to move as soon as Jack and Ryan are off, Michael pull Ray out with you, you’ve got more padding,” the team stared at Caleb as he kept his eyes on the bikes drawing closer, he’d moved to the centre of the road going slower now that the impact to be great if the vehicles collided but slow enough that the guys wouldn’t sustain massive damage when they jumped.

“And what are you gonna do in this Caleb?” Geoff asked his voice low, hinted with fear.

“It’s been an experience working with you,” he smiled kindly, but too quick the bikes were on them rushing past the long bonnet of the Roosevelt as their arms came out, slapping explosives on to the car’s doors. Geoff didn’t have time to think as he saw Jack disappear from the mirror behind him, quickly followed by Michael and Ray, flinging himself from the car he tucked rolling across the road to the edge of the dirt while Caleb barrelled on, the doors just latched shut until he was out of a detailed line of sight.

“Blow it! Now!” a familiar female voice yelled from behind him, encouraging the woman in the cat mask to press hard on the detonator she had hold of before Ryan could grab it. Sure enough the vehicle disappeared, engulfed from front to back in bright flame as the pair of sticky bombs went off turning the once beautiful car in to a charred carcase as it barrel rolled down the rest of the road, just meeting with the vans.

“Get the fuck off me!” screeched a set of voices. Geoff turned, stumbling to his feet and toward where both Jack and Ryan had the two bikers down, their bikes scrapped further back down the road.

The woman that Ryan had a hold on swung, her fist connecting with the plastic jaw of his face protector and splitting as she swung again this time throwing her whole body in to it and managing to roll Ryan off herself, drawing a gun from her hip as she fired two shots in to his side as she stood, another catching Michael in the shoulder as he went to tackle her back to the ground. Geoff went toward Jack helping as much as he could until the eagle headed woman was being crushed face down in to the dirt, with Jack’s knee planted firmly in the centre of her back, locking her arms there.  
It had taken a little more to get the other woman down but soon she too was face down in the dirt.

“Right I’m sick of these fucking masks,” Michael cursed, wiping at the bloody lip he’d sustained, the bullet in his shoulder mostly forgotten about. He reached for the cat mask, pausing as a short sob came from within the rubber.

“Michael, please,” the woman pleaded. Michael felt his blood run cold as he reached for the ear of the mask tugging it lightly from Lindsay’s head.

He stumbled back, the mask falling from his fingers as he looked to Geoff. He was staring at Lindsay his face a mix of anger and pain as before turning his attention back to the woman that was still struggling beneath Jack, thin blonde hair slowly falling from beneath the rubber as he reached down.

Gun shots sounded behind them before the crew slowly fell to the ground, bullet holes weeping now in their chests and backs as two van’s rolled up behind them.

“Seriously couldn’t have come any sooner?” Lindsay groaned shoving Ryan off her back as he lay unconscious, three fresh bullet holes in his jacket slowly growing darker.

“We thought you had it under control,” the deer joked.

“Under control? We almost fucking died,” the other yelled, tugging off her eagle mask as she rolled her shoulders.

“Oh don’t be a drama queen Griffon,” the puma snapped back at her, walking past to grab the bike that had skidded a little further down the road, “someone grab that other bike, we need to get going before either these guys wake back up or other people start using this road.”.

Lindsay rolled her eyes grabbing her mask from where it had landed near Michael’s feet before sparing a glance at him. It was a good shot, one in his chest another just off the centre of his head, would take a while before he came back, especially with Geoff being down as well.

The deer wandered back past her with the other bike, both being placed in the back of each van before they were locked up again and the other two masked women were ready to go.

“We best shove them off to the side a little, gonna guess that Ryan will be the first back other than Geoff,” Griffon muttered as she grabbed Geoff, tugging him over to the far side of the road in to the bushes. The rest of the team muttered but each grabbed a person, dragging them out of view unless you were explicitly looking for them. Once they were out of view the four women left, leaving the still living corpses for the bugs.

\-------

It was a few hours later that Ryan woke up, rolling himself on to his hands and knees as he spluttered. He could feel the bullets still stuck beneath his jacket so he pulled it off, stretching and shaking the material until all five fell in to the grass beside him.

Beside him lay Michael and Ray, Gavin was a little further down, with Geoff and Jack at the far end barely in the line of foliage.  
He knew he had a while to wait, Geoff’s skill would be working in overtime to try and get him up and running again while still preventing the other four from dying completely and in the mean time Ryan had very little he could do to help it, setting himself back in to a seated position on the grassy bank. Their car was destroyed, Caleb with in as it still sat as a smoking wreck at the edge of the road a way up from them, the other vans and bikes however were no where to be seen save for the paint marks and wheel skids still stuck to the tarmac. They needed a way back, once the other woke up, if they woke up, but given their current situation Ryan was sure that if he wandered off they think he’d gone for good.

He’d seen the stuff Gavin had been reading, stupid fan sites and his old files from when he first joined up with Geoff. In the past, yeah, he’d only thought for himself, he’d only ever had to to think of himself because anyone else had been a liability but he’d be lying to say that he hadn’t thought about taking off again at this point it might actually be the safer option to be selfish.

He pushed himself up from where he’d sat, the military base wasn’t far from here maybe a twenty minute or so walk if he went through the woods. Michael had a location there, ordinance, vehicles, aircraft, with any luck he'd be able to find something to help him out.

It was only after he’d disappeared far past the tree line that Geoff gasped back to life, clutching at his chest where two bloody holes now ripped through his shirt. He cursed slightly as he tugged the last few millimetres of bullet from his chest, ignoring the small dribble of blood that freshly painted his clothing, and threw them away from himself, turning to look at Jack who was hunched beside him, his back a drying red brown but with two bullets already pushed from his skin.

He looked around realising that Ryan was no where in sight. Maybe he’d left them, maybe he’d gone for help, hijacked a car and headed back toward the base to try and get Kdin but there was no one else waiting beside the road and cars that few and far in-between that it was unlikely that Ryan would have nabbed one in time before Geoff woke up.

Geoff didn’t know how long he sat there in silence trying to make sense of the events before now. Caleb had sacrificed himself, the burnt out Roosevelt was evidence enough of that, and Lindsay while alive (which Geoff had conflicting feelings about) was indeed on the opposing side. The woman he couldn’t be sure of she’d sounded familiar, too familiar for Geoff to find any sort of comfort.

So far all of Mica’s team had appeared to be female, but he couldn’t doubt that they were just the inner circle, further out she probably had a varied mix and if the people in the videos they’d seen in the earlier games were anything to go by they did vary an awful lot. Which, while he could start to guess and worry about the females in his own team, meant that wasn’t really anyone he could pin point as an enemy.

Soon enough the first gasps were heard from behind him, a groggy croaks and curses filling the air as Ray shuffled from the undergrowth clutch his stomach.

“Bleeding outs gotta be one of the worst,” he groaned slotting himself carefully on the grass beside Geoff, “No one else back yet?” he asked, spotting Jack beside Geoff.

“Ryan got back first, don’t know where he’s gone though, guy booked it,” Geoff murmured looking across the empty road. Ray waited letting the information set in, before speaking again.

“You think he’s gone for good?” he asked quietly.

“Don’t know, he might be safer if he did but I don’t know whats going on in his head any more,” Geoff admitted looking down at his hands. At this point he wouldn’t blame Ryan for leaving before shit got real enough that it could actually cost them their lives but he honestly thought that Gavin and everyone meant more to him than a simple fuck that he seemed to leave at the drop of a hat without a second thought.

Geoff sighed, “You know how long either of those will take to come back?” he asked nodding his head toward Gavin and Michael.

“Michael was head shot, think Gavin was just his chest but the front of his shirt is pretty much covered so it’s hard to tell how many bullets he took,” he answered looking back at the pair. As he turned to look back at Geoff he spotted a van barrelling toward them, it’s windows blacked out while it’s exterior was painted in dark camouflage colours.

“Fuck, get back,” Ray said, dragging Geoff back in to the majority of the cover just as the van squeaked to a halt just past them. They stayed low as a door clicked open and slammed back shut, the person edging through the undergrowth toward Jack, going to grab one arm before Geoff jumped out and tackled him to the ground.

“Jesus fucking Christ Geoff, why!” Ryan croaked as he and Geoff hit the floor, Geoff’s fist drawn back ready to land a punch on his jaw. Geoff deflated slightly, lowering his arm and moving his weight back on to Ryan’s legs as he pushed himself back up on his elbows.

“Sorry dude, thought you was one of Mica’s lot,” Geoff apologised, climbing off Ryan.

Ryan stood, wiping at the dirt on his jeans before realising there was no point considering how much blood was covering his shirt and pants. He spotted Ray then standing back up slowly behind Geoff with a slightly shocked look in his eyes.

“You guys thought I took off didn’t you,” he asked bluntly, looking between the pair. They didn’t answer but Ryan knew he was right, “you seriously think after everything I’d abandon my team?” he asked, hurt.

“You’ve been acting very merc like lately Ry, dead disconnected, you can’t really blame us for thinking you’d got out now,” Ray said honestly. Ryan looked at him hurt tearing at his heart.

“I’ve had a lot to work through, now are we getting back to base or not?” he said, hating that he had to push past a lump in his throat in order to speak as he moved toward Jack again. Both Geoff and Ray looked at him, before moving to help, Geoff grabbing Jack’s other side and hauling him in to the back of the van while Ray moved to grab Gavin. With everyone in the car Ray stayed in the back.

It was a surreal experience sitting in the back of a dark van with a bunch of yours friends that seemed very very dead and Ray had to keep reminding himself that their bodies were working hard to get them back awake. By the time they hit the city Jack was back in the land of the living, panicking slightly until he realised that he wasn’t allow and Ray explained what was going on, he calmed down a little after that, trying to steady himself against the walls of the van as he moved toward the passenger seat to wrap his arms around Geoff’s shoulders. Geoff squeezed back as best he could before Jack returned to the back of the van sitting beside Ray with most of his weight leant on his knees since his back was still healing.

“Why didn’t they just kill us while we were out there?” Ryan thought aloud as they drove through the city.

“Probably didn’t have the right equipment,” Geoff pointed out leaning against the window as he tried to ignore the tightness and pain still left in his chest.

“Narr, they had SMGs, you can cut through a spinal cord with one of those easy,” Ryan said a slight chuckle too his voice that put a slight fear in Geoff.

“You’re a creepy dude, you know that,” he joked.

“Yeah... good job I’m a loyal one,” Ryan said, it had meant to come out as a joke but the hardness to his voice made it sound more like he was trying to make a point. And why shouldn’t he, his entire team (or at least the ones that were still breathing) really thought that he’d just taken off and left them to rot on the side of a road with nothing but a burnt out car and corpse for company. The idea had crossed his mind yes, but when he thought about it he couldn’t just leave.

As much as he’d like to, and as much as they all got on his nerves at points he enjoyed being part of the Fake AH Crew hell he’d go as far as to say that he loved each of them and while that did have the tendency to get buried under stupid things or never actually said it didn’t change the fact that Ryan couldn’t leave what he’d started. Not now, probably not ever.

With the base looming in to view the tension in the van changed, it wasn’t like it was their base anymore, they felt wrong approaching it without a second thought when a snake could be behind every corner. Anyone could be against them, but on the upside anyone could be with them as well because there was always the long shot that someone was pulling a double bluff.

###### -

It was long after they got back to the base that Michael woke back up, Gavin had come to as they were dragging him out of the van so trying to prevent him from panicking and risk anyone hearing them had been difficult, Michael had still been a dead weight on the other hand leaving Ryan to carrying him upstairs with Jack in tow so he could check if there would be permanent damage. It had never happened before but head shots were always the scariest injuries to deal with when paired with other wounds. After a though inspection however Jack left assured that the lad would be fine leaving them with the annoying task of running shifts until he woke up while the rest of the team continued to work.

With Caleb now gone it fell to Geoff to tell Kdin, who had taken it well at the time only to crumble a few hours later when he forgot that he was now alone in the large office and had asked a question to nothing but thin air. Jack stayed with him after that focusing on what they still had and what territory they’d lost over the course of the feud.

After the shoot out in the gambling district Geoff had lost all control, despite teams working around the clock to try and get something in or out of there everything was coming back fruitless. Mica’s team didn’t mess around and it was clear she too had a lot of connections in high places with constant patrols of gang teams and squad cars circling the area, along with that every camera that had been set up the area had been well and truly destroyed. Most had been taken out completely while others had simply been spray painted still allowing sound through but seemed those that had been left were just for show as no information of value or interest ever came through.

In the end it was left, there were bigger problems that a little corner of lost territory and pretty much everyone knew it by this point. Any hand or gun that could be spared was set out to guard and move any remaining goods to hopefully keep them out of danger. In the meantime, Geoff kept Burnie and Matt busy with bringing in new teams, all trusted and all known for being some of the biggest heavy hitters and names around the world. With that in play it fell to Gus and Joel to keep them within the city without their rival catching on, there wasn’t a doubt in their minds that she’d not been building up her own army but that didn’t mean that she needed to know what Ramsey had going on. And so people came, from far and wide, hiding in the city and base while other teams slowly dwindled and disappeared.

The Funhaus team had made themselves scarce after the shoot out, but with the obvious increase of artillery and muscle filtering through the base others began fearing their own safety. Those that stayed, stayed permanently sleeping in the base wherever they could with offices and lounge areas quickly becoming strewn with camp beds and blankets. Geoff hadn’t questioned the disappearance of Griffon or some other members of the mechanics’ team, he figured that she’d been part of it after they managed to pin Lindsay in the middle of the road, other disappearances did shock and sadden him at points however. The surveillance team dwindled with Tina and Barbara leaving along with Meg and Ashley, which hit Ryan a lot more than he would ever admit to anyone even himself, reception was manned in shifts of people after Caiti and Steffie disappeared having never returned from the emergency evacuation. With Funhaus Elyse had also gone although she’d stuck around the Funhaus offices alone for several days before doing so, and the various ammunitions and customs teams almost came to a complete halt when Jon, Mariel, and Tyler also vanished.

\-------

“What we need is a plan!” Gavin yelled across the table at Michael. It had been almost two weeks without any form of action off Mica’s team and the silence around the bases was starting to make everyone antsy. Michael had come back without little worry although it had taken him a couple days to get his bearings on what was going on but memory loss wasn’t anything they worried about.

“Fuck plans! I just blow the fuckers up and take off their heads with my bare fucking hands!” Michael yelled back. He’d been on a tear after the memories of the car accident had come back, even more so when he remembered that Lindsay was alive and was working for Mica for who knew how long.

“Michael calm down, we need to think serious about this,” Ryan said trying to keep his voice calm while his hands clenched in to fists his jacket pockets.

“Oh look whose telling me to be fucking serious! Mr Mad Merc Impulsive himself! I am fucking serious Ryan; it _seriously_ can’t be that hard to find another location with as much if not more activity than this one!” he yelled toward the gent, watching as his jaw clenched beneath the skin.

“You don’t think we’ve been trying! I’ve told you she’s good, she knows how to stay hidden until she wants to be known,” Gavin retorted. He was angry, but he was also hurt and tired and fed up and sad. For two straight weeks everyone had been arguing now it was starting to tear them apart more than usual. Ryan still hadn’t confronted anyone about their subtle lack of trust, nor had he brought up the information Gavin had been searching, and he wasn’t intending up to the point that Michael had started ranting. Even now with Michael still laying in to Gavin about how much he seemed to worship Mica and her brilliance in hiding he couldn’t figure out where he fit in.

Jack was with Kdin, keeping him company and trying to get their affairs in order, Geoff was of out in the city trying to recruit and was meeting some more internationals later that evening, Michael was working on keeping their remaining ordinance off radar, Gavin was still working on trying to find Mica's team and Ray… well truth be told Ryan had no idea where he was, the Puerto Rican had disappeared as soon as the arguments started to become a daily thing. He was still in the base, that Ryan did know because he saw him every once in while as he ducked out of a room that had more than a single person in. Ray ideology currently stood that if there were two or more people in a room together an argument was going to happen and so far he hadn’t been wrong.

“Michael will you just stop!” Ryan finally snapped after realising the Gavin was no longer arguing back.

“Why Ryan? We’ve all thought it, I’m just the one with the balls to say it. Everything was going great until he showed up! How do we know he wasn’t the signal for every rat in the base to start fucking shit up!” Michael knew he wasn’t wrong, he could see it in Ryan’s eyes that he knew he had a point but he wasn’t finished, they’d been beating around Ryan weird behaviour since he shot Mica, hell even a few weeks before that he’d been acting odd.

“You know what Ryan maybe it’s not just Gavin, maybe the pair of you are in on this together, yeah the brains and muscle. Think the pair of you can be the new power couple and take over Achievement City once Jack and Geoff and everyone else is out of the way? Or maybe your planning on going it alone again? Let Mica and us lot go to war and clear out most of the competition then you take out the stragglers, have everything for yourself, sounds a lot like you Ryan!” Michael continued, watching as Ryan’s fist came out of his pockets to ball ready at his sides as he stepped forward unconsciously.

“You know I’d never go against Geoff,” Ryan replied stiffly.

“Why you don’t have tie to him, you don’t owe him shit. You’re here of your own accord and now that shits getting bad you’re either starting to doubt it being a good idea or starting to think about how you can twist everything in to your favour,” Michael continued, he was leaning toward Ryan now, the edge of table cutting in to his thigh as he stained to get at Ryan while Gavin coward between them.

“Yeah I was on my own for a while, and maybe all this shit has been getting to me but I couldn’t leave now even if I wanted to. I came in to this crew as a way to protect my own back but you don’t know half of what you guys actually mean to me,” Ryan gritted his teeth.

“And what do we mean to you Ryan?” Ray asked, his voice calm from the doorway. The three turned to look at him, Ryan locking his gaze with Ray’s, “Well?” Ray pushed. Ryan stared at him, stepping back toward the wall with a slow shake of his head.

“He fucking can’t say cause we don’t mean shit to him,” Michael spat finally, striding toward Ray and stepping around him out of the door. Gavin watched him leave before standing his gaze sweeping over Ryan as he stared at him, scared and unsure of what to say, Gavin shook his head slowly before too leaving the room, giving Ray a small squeeze on the shoulder as he passed.

“You need to figure out where you stand Ryan, and if you can’t then maybe... maybe it is best that you go,” Ray said, his voice low enough that it barely reached Ryan as he turned his back leaving Ryan alone.

Ryan thought about calling after him, about running around the base and finding each of them to tell them that he loved them and that he’d die for them and that he couldn’t leave now cause the thought of anything happening to them made him feel sick to his stomach. But he didn’t go after them, he didn’t even speak, instead in lashed out. Kicking and punching at the the table and chairs until they were nothing more than pieces of mangled metal and wood with several fair sized holes and dints now littering the walls.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm slowly realising that I'm putting of finishing this because I don't want it to end... I like these characters and seeing the shit they've gone through (the shit I've put them through) is actually really sad.  
> I'm gone miss writing this when it's over.


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this has taken so long, I've been working through a major bout of creative block currently but looking forward to finishing off this story and starting something new. Don't worry I won't leave this one without an ending.

That night Gavin slept alone, in comparison to how they’d been at the start of everything it seemed that being together no longer gave them the kind of comfort they needed. As far as Gavin knew the only two that still slept in the same bed were Jack and Geoff, Ray would sometimes get a couple hours in beside Michael but his sleeping pattern had become so erratic that he was usually awake most of the night and took to wandering about the base or sitting on the roof watching the city.

\-------

A coldness swept over Gavin’s body causing him to wake, instantly attempting to twist and stretch only to find himself hindered; tied to chair in the centre of what seemed to be some sort of basement. Around a wall he could just about make out the back end of a small truck but other than that he couldn’t make out much else. Twisting in his seat he felt the plastic ties bite into the skin on his wrists and ankles, his torso had also been secured to the chair with a rope tight around his upper arms, preventing him from leaning forward.

Other than himself and the truck the basement seemed empty with the florescent lights buzzing above him. The low noise of a door clicking and shuots caught his attention cause him to kick and twist until he managed to scrap his chair around to look toward the staircase at the back of the basement as a door clicked shut from the top, the sound of footsteps echoing throughout the room.

Gavin felt himself shaking slightly, forcing himself to a stop as a foot emerged on the step. What followed Gavin couldn’t have expected as a woman prowled toward him, the tight jeans and vest top not leaving much to the imagination but topped with the white bunny mask that Gavin had become all too familiar with over the months.

The woman approached him but didn’t say a word as she stepped behind him and yanked the chair around to face in the opposite direction. Now he faced a camera and another woman, dressed similar but it a black t-shirt rather than a vest, with table of various weapons beside her just out of shot of the camera. He couldn’t stop staring as the woman behind the camera, tilted her doe covered face and clicked the camera on causing Gavin’s eyes to glance toward the now flashing red light.

He could still feel the other woman behind him, her hands running up and down his shoulders and chest while the other made her way over to the table; looking over the contents in contemplation before picking up a pair of butterfly knives, twisting one so the blade was out.

“Ready to play?” the woman behind him asked her voice creepily sweet as it echoed through the room, moving her hands more forcefully down Gavin’s chest, fingers slipping between the buttons and popping them open as she nodded along with the other.

“Boss said we can have a lot of fun with this one,” the other woman laughed moving closer with the knife.

Without a seconds break the pair seemed to work in unison. The bunny headed woman pulled apart Gavin’s shirt, buttons popping and skittering over the concrete floor while the other woman longed forward landing the edge of the blade at the end of Gavin’s left collar bone and pulling it out in one smooth move leaving the hole in his shoulder to bleed steadily as the blade hit his skin again, splitting with ease to leave a brilliant red and seeping line from his collar to the right of Gavin’s stomach making him cry out.

The cry only seemed to spur the pair on as the woman from behind Gavin took the other butterfly knife that the doe headed one had picked up and pulled it firmly across Gavin’s chest quickly making it a cross work of bleeding lines.

From there the onslaught didn’t seem to end and Gavin found himself in tears begging for them to stop or someone to help. He didn’t doubt in his mind that the recording was being broadcast straight to the base, but still no one came and blood continued to pour as the women worked their way through knife after knife, while his body continued to try and heal the immortality that ran through him preventing him from passing out due to blood loss despite the puddle that surround him.

With his front bleeding steadily both women stepped back to admire their work, tilting their heads this way and that. Gavin let his head fall back as a voice rang through the basement again.

“You can cry and beg all you want Gavin, no one will come, you’re not the only one that can track. If you think they hired you as anything more than a fuck or a pretty face you’re just kidding yourself,” a voice laughed from behind him, heels clicking on the concrete as she moved her way around his body. Gavin found himself shaking his head pulling it back up so that he facing the camera again, trying to block it out the pain in his body as he squeaked out a response.

“That not true, they care, they’ll come, they’ll kill you,” he gasped, every breath tugging at the fresh and healing cuts that filled his torso.

The three women in front of him laughed as they watched his dependence on the team shine through without a second thought but the boss wasn’t done as she strode toward Gavin, stalking around him again while her nails ran over the few areas of untouched skin on his neck, the shreads of his shirt and scraped at the damp hair on his head.

“Oh they care do they? Think about it Gavin, Ryan only wanted one thing when you showed up; didn’t take you long to fall in to bed with him, or the Puerto Rican, or the angry one for that matter. Hell you even let the boss and his lackie have their way with you when things got tough.” Gavin couldn’t block it out, his breath was coming in short pained gasps as the onslaught of insults continued, his eye screwed shut and chin to his chest as he tried to curl in on himself, but the nails that curled in the hair at the back of his head brought him back pulled taught as she continued to whisper in his ear.

“What happened to your self-respect Gavin? Did it die with the booze? Or was it ripped from you when the big bad boss brought you back; made you woke for him? Just accept it Gavin they would have been here hours ago if they cared, maybe your death is the only way they’ll realise what they’ve lost.” Gavin’s head was roughly shoved back against his chest, “Finish him off will you,” she tutted wandering back toward the staircase and out of sight.

Gavin looked up in time to see the pair moving. The white bunny shifting toward him with a sleek, fresh knife gripped loosely in her palm as she made her way back around him, pulling his head back against her stomach as she looked down at him, hazel eyes staring through the small holes in the mask. He watched as they crinkled in to a wide smile before the blade was pulled across his throat finally pushing his body over the edge.

\-------

Gavin woke with a start, covered in sweat with the sheets knotting around his legs. He sat up, it was still dark the early hours’ traffic barely making a dent in the silence of the night but accompanying the clicks and whirs of the never sleeping building. He pushed himself up and out of the bed, stripping himself out of his soaked shirt before wandering out on to the landing.

From here he could hear the low snores of Jack and Geoff as they slept together, but Michael’s door was ajar meaning that Ray had already started his usual midnight wanderings. Ryan was still no where to be seen as Gavin walked toward the bathroom intent on having a quick shower to wake himself up completely.

The nightmares rattled him, but it seemed now that he could put faces to the voices. Of course the masks were still prevalent, the only ones they’d seen beneath the masks of so far were Mica and Lindsay but the others still had that air of anonymity that made them terrifying. Lindsay, being the black cat was likely close with Mica, but was becoming obvious that the bunny, doe, and puma were also part of the inner circle and figuring out those could give them an advantage. At least they’d have an idea what kind of training they were going up against.

As Gavin got dressed in to a fresh pair of shorts and a t-shirt he heard some muffled thuds from one of the bedrooms. Following the sound to Ryan’s room he pushed the door slightly, the bright lights of the hall filling the room and casting over Ryan as he paused from stuffing clothes in to a duffle bag.

“What are you doing Ryan?” Gavin asked, praying that everything his sense were telling him was a lie.

“I didn’t think anyone but Ray was awake,” Ryan said, pausing for a second before turning to grab more clothes.

“You were just going to leave without saying bye? Disappear like everyone else?” Gavin asked, trying to keep the hurt from his voice.

“I… no… I’m not…” Ryan paused again taking a deep breath before speaking, “I don’t fit here anymore Gav, Michaels right... Rays right... its safer for me to go now before I get someone seriously hurt.”

“How is it safer for you to go when were already scrapping for numbers?” Gavin asked, stepping further in to the room as he gestured toward the door and in to the base where offices had become hostels for the criminally successful.

“Don’t Gavin, you know that this team is never going to work as long as I’m here. Everyones right, I’m impulsive and to honest I’m surprised its not killed anyone yet, but no ones going to trust that I won’t be selfish when it comes down to it. And don’t try to say that you trust me, I know, I saw the research you were pulling up on me, that’s not trust,” Ryan cut off, refusing to meet Gavin’s eye as he zipped the bag shut and pulled it on to his shoulder. 

“Don’t try to change my mind Gav, I need to go, I should never have showed up in the first place,” he mumbled striding toward Gavin who had frozen to the spot, staring at the ground as he fought back tears, “I’ll see you around,” he said finally walking past Gavin and out of the door.

It took Gavin a couple moments to shake himself back in to reality but when he did he didn’t get far, the two steps that took him from the room were enough to see Ryan getting in to the elevator at the end of the hall without a second glace, the doors closing on his back leaving him more alone than he’d felt in a long time.

“Hey Vav,” a soft voice called from the opposite end of the hall, “wanna come sit on the roof?” Ray asked, pointing behind him to the fair escape door that lead toward the helicopter pad on top of the building. Gavin nodded numbly, taking Ray’s out stretched hand and letting him lead Gavin up on to the roof.

It was nice to be outside, the brisk wind seemed to wipe everything away while the darkness of the sky made you feel just small enough that problems didn’t matter. Ray and Gavin didn’t speak, they just existed together, lay side by on the empty helicopter pad looking up at the sky. This high up there wasn’t a lot of light pollution so the stars were easier to see once the clouds shifted out of view. When they did speak it was in low voices that barely carried on the wind, almost as though they were scared of being heard by anyone but each other, Ray asked where Ryan had gone and Gavin had spoke honestly saying that he didn’t know but that Ray had been right. When Gavin asked where Ray disappeared to during the day he answered truthfully.

“I usually just come up here, no one else does anymore, it’s peaceful.”

Gavin smiled softly at Ray’s answer. It was peaceful up here, completely removed it was almost like their lives weren’t in constant danger, with the quiet thump of the city beneath them you really started to understand that they didn’t matter to this city no one did really. People died every day, sometimes at the hands of criminals such as themselves sometimes in bed surrounded by their loved ones, but that didn’t change the fact that the city still lived and grew and survived and continued to despite everything wrong within it.

“Hey, don’t worry about Ryan, he’ll come back when we need him,” Ray whispered matter-of-factly. Gavin turned his head to look at him.

“How do you know?” Gavin asked.

“I don’t I just hope that he realises he does belong here,” Ray said. Gavin thought about it for a second resting his head back against the tarmac and watching the clouds move across the sky as it shifted from black in to dawn.

\-------

With Ryan gone and everyone else still seeming busy Gavin went back to his usual routine of surveillance, checking every street and camera for signs of interference or activity that could give them even the smallest hint of where the rival was hiding.

Ray joined him every once in a while bringing chips and soda but never saying much, Gavin didn’t mind, just the prescense of another person was enough to stop him from losing his mind or letting his mind wander back to the fact that Ryan had just left them. He’d be alright of course, he’d survived on his own in the past so he could still do it now the only worry that Gavin had was he’d survived without a so far unbeatable psychopath searching for them and Gavin was sure that if they found out he’d left they’d go after him directly.

Ray was the one that told Geoff and Jack about the situation, he didn’t tell Michael though. Michael’s ego and irritation was already at an all-time high and finding that Ryan had bailed would only fuel him to say more hurtful comments and that was the last thing anyone, especially Gavin, needed right now. The search was still cold, they’d been searching everywhere for even a glace of Mica’s team but it seemed that all of them disappeared unground unless they were causing mischief and blowing shit up the price of which began to increase dramatically over the next few days.

Now that Geoff had completely given up hope of regaining the gambling district it had been blown and burnt to the ground, leaving nothing but piles of rubble and ash to decorate the north-east coastal line, the scrapes of the apartment building had also been moved over the weeks after being completely sifted through by a few of Geoff’s team. Now both those areas were kept clear of Geoff’s remaining team, it was too big a risk to have a lot of people at one time in case they attracted attention and even more of a risk to have any of the main team out of the base.

Geoff wasn’t happy about Ray’s multiple trips to the roof, the guy could spend hours up there and while it wasn’t likely that he’d ever be spotted from the ground Geoff didn’t doubt that Mica’s crew would have air patrols out and about, even more so if they ever found out that Ryan had now taken off.  
Ryan leaving meant that they had just lost their battering ram, the one person that most people still seemed to fear, he’d also been forced to call any remaining mercenary teams in to the base. It wasn’t something he did often, Geoff rarely interacted with the mercs (except in the recruitment process) since Ryan had shown up at his door, but now with Ryan gone and not directing their actions anymore Geoff saw it as the safer option to have them pegged up in the base along with everyone else they’d be bringing in.

\-------

Slowly but surely the base began to fill up again, rows upon rows of camp beds lined rooms and rec halls. Uniforms once again filed through the corridors between the armoury and testing zones while fitness suits seemed to have a continuous clank of metal mixed with the grunts and groans of a testosterone fuelled room.

In a sense everyone was glad that the base was back to being a lively hub of activity, but really it was all a ruse since they were just milling about to pass the time while the rival stayed quiet. It had been over month since their last interaction with Mica’s animal faced goons, three weeks since Ryan had left with less than a bye to anyone but Gavin and still no word about where he’d gotten to or if he was even still kicking.

Gavin kept himself busy so his mind couldn’t wander and Ray checked in with him a lot more than he did the others even Michael who still seemed to begrudgingly stomp around the base without an actual goal in mind. Gavin and Ray had taken to sharing a bedroom since Ray didn’t really sleep, but his lack of sleep meant that he was there to try and comfort or wake Gavin when he had another nightmare. Gavin’s night terrors had gotten worse since Ryan left and while Ray was nice to have around and have to calm him back down when he woke up it wasn’t the same. Ryan was solid, muscular and unmoving, someone that Gavin could cling to and now he was safe and that things were okay and real while Ray was softer, gentle and slim with something more feminine that seemed to trick Gavin’s brain in the moments between being asleep and waking up.

Meanwhile Geoff and Jack had finished all they could until Mica’s team made a move. They were still hoping that she’d been killed when Ryan shot her which would explain why their last interaction had been a complete attempt at their lives in order to avenge their leader, but Geoff wasn’t stupid, he was immortal, he could share his gift, Ryan was immortal, Lindsay too, who was to say that Mica wasn’t also playing the same game. The silence did make them all uneasy however, while the base was busy again it was also restless.

Everyone they could possibly have called in from around the world was here along with every multilingual merc and assassin they could get their hands on to try and bridge some of the language gaps between teams. While some overseas teams kept to themselves others did mingle with the main group when they managed to get more than two words out of them, it was mainly Gavin who welcomed the distractions talking to anyone and everyone who would give him time and actually smiling a little when he found other Brits that allowed him to revert back slightly. Whenever Geoff or Jack heard these conversations they were both positive that none of them were speaking English, especially given the speed they all seemed to speak to one another.

Michael kept to himself, watching the other teams and how they worked and even though he hated to think about it there were a pair of twins that reminded him of Ryan. They were ruthless, fast, a little dark humoured but absolutely lovely at the same time, and he didn’t doubt that had Ryan stuck around he would have got along with them instantly. Gavin stayed away from them.  
Their likeness to Ryan made him sad, even more so when they offered to train with him as a distraction and found most of their moves very similar to Ryan’s style of hand to hand combat; he’d quickly excused himself from that session and not really spoke to them again since.

Then a week later, as winter rolled in thick with snow laying thin across the tops of buildings and in untrodden alleyways, a message came through to the base. The television sets throughout the building flicked between black and white before a large white ‘M’ stretched and shifted across the screen before settling on a pastel purple backdrop.

Mica stood in the centre, with her animals either side of her, Lindsay in her cat mask at her right hand with the doe head beside her while the white rabbit and puma stared at them from the left.

Everyone watched in silence as she grinned, the pairs moving shiftily at her sides as she began to speak,

“Hello Ramsey and team, surprised to see me? Probably not you know how this immortality thing works now. Anyway to business, you seem to be raising a little army against me in that fancy base of yours, so how about one final game. Once this message is over I’ll give you a list of coordinates and numbers, the numbers are how many people I will have at those locations, I expect a fair fight so I will hope you to split your teams accordingly.” Mica paused while various CCTV footage of areas around the city filled the screen, some locations were completely desolate while other still bustled with the pre-Christmas rush.

“Now of course I don’t expect your main six to be split up Ramsey, no, I’ll send you a coordinate personally, I shall meet you there with my own team,” she gestured to the group surrounding her, “plus a couple others,” in stepped the woman that wore an eagle mask and the other a tan shiba, equalling out the sides, “of course because of this I’m going to allow you to bring one extra person, that way our numbers will be equal, it shouldn’t be that hard to pick since my girls already knocked out one of your little protégés,” the last word twisted in to a smirk from her lips, and made Geoff’s fists clench beneath his crossed arms, he was watching the broadcast with Kdin and Jack and noticed how Kdin flinched a little before straightening his back again and staring stone faced at the screen.

“Well, goodbye for now Ramsey, I’ll see you and your boys soon,” with that the screen blacked again replaced by rows of coordinates and numbers, most of her numbers hovered between twenty and thirty while other loaded up in to the fifties. It wasn’t long before most of the team were back together in the main base, with Geoff, Jack, and Kdin searching out each coordinate, Ray running off every piece of information he knew about the place and Gavin getting surveillance set up for each sector it seemed everyone was ready for the fight that was about to take place.

Michael kept himself out of the way, he’d been in his workshop most of the days high on fumes from acids and soldering equipment while gunpowder stained under his fingers nails and burns covered the tips of his fingers. He’d barely stopped working when the broadcast had taken over the base, glancing up for just long enough to see her line up and then again when she mentioned the ‘ _main six_ ’ to scoff and laugh. She still hadn’t picked up that Ryan had left? The guy must have been laying real low for the past weeks. Then he saw her numbers and the laugh slowly faded, the woman had over two hundred soldiers at her disposal while Geoff had only managed a hundred and fifty from around the world meaning that half of them couldn’t even understand each other he knew that Geoff wouldn’t be thinking about that he wasn’t even sure if he’d even look at how many people were at each location, he’d be too busy trying to find out if any location had a particular meaning.

As Michael pushed himself out of the workshop with a huff, he started to think about the potential for this being a bluff. It was completely possible, Mica was twisted and enjoyed games and Michael wouldn’t put it past her at all to have an ambush on them at their ‘personal’ location. It also hit him that Mica hadn’t given them any sort of time frame, the whole message could be a ploy to just get everybody back on edge and thinking they actually had things to do.

As Michael expected he walked in to their main room to find them gathered around a table, the map of Achievement City stretched between three of them while Gavin sat staring at the screens on cameras and Ray leant against the wall his head tilted back against with his eyes shut and hoodie pulled up while he reeled every piece of information he knew about the areas that Mica had pinpointed.

From what they’d figured out so far was that most of her people were located downtown covering the pointed in the north-east but mostly likely spreading along the line since they had three coordinates covering the north of Downtown, effectively cutting off from the main part of the city. Another fight was set in the abandoned gambling district of the main city with another in the centre, locked between their own base, the old apartment block and the ACPD headquarters, and finally one on the west side in the more office centred district of the city. There was also a fight at the docks.

“So how are we splitting up the teams?” Michael asked stepping completely in to the room. Everyone paused to look at him, they all looked like they’d been to hell and back and yet seemed shocked by his appears. Fair enough, Michael had kept to himself a lot more since his argument with Ryan, even more so when it got to him that Ryan had abandoned them, mainly because he hadn’t trusted himself to not make a snide comment around Gavin since he knew how much Ryan had meant to the Lad. But as a result of him avoiding Gavin, he’d inadvertently also ended up avoiding his own boyfriend since Ray had pretty much posted himself close to Gavin’s side 24/7.  
Geoff and Jack he’d mainly been avoiding because he knew that A) Jack would want to talk to him about the whole Lindsay being on the other team situation… and B) Geoff was reaching the point of paranoia and obsessiveness that Michael rarely saw, let allow knew how to deal with. So like most things he just avoided it, it also meant that he never had to have the awkward, sorry your friend/lover is dead, kinda our fault on that one, with Kdin.

“You haven’t even thought about it yet have you?” Michael asked rhetorically just to break the silence.

“We’re figuring out where Mica’s posting her teams first,” Geoff muttered turning back to the map and scrape of paper that he’d scribbled the coordinates on to before they’d vanished off the TV set and returned to the usual news broadcastings.

“Well you best get to it quick since Mica didn’t give us a date that this is going down, could be tomorrow and the majority of our overseas teams don’t even speak the same language,” he tried to ignore how mocking he sounded even in his own ears, reminding himself that it wasn’t Geoff’s fault most of their team had left them.

“That’s what the multilinguals are for,” Geoff said, not looking up from the map as he traced over the same line again.

“So we have… seven multilinguals, at least seven locations, one for each I guess although… how one person is going to translate for fifty people that can’t communicate with each other.”

“Will you just shut the fuck up!” Gavin yelled, interrupting him from across the room as he stood. Michael paused, glaring at him, Gavin didn’t care as he stormed toward where Michael had sat down beside the table still shouting, “You’ve stayed out of our way for over month, don’t think you can come in here now and just start blabbing your mouth, Ryan has already left because you made him feel like he didn’t fit in this team anymore and if you’re going to continue acting like this maybe you should go to because I know a lot of these people we’ve hired would literally die to take your place,” he was only a few more steps of being toe to toe with Michael now, his hands clenched in to fists at his sides while his shoulders heaved.

,p>“You want me to leave Gavin?” Michael pushed, standing slowly from his chair and closing the gap between them. Michael was shorter than Gavin but broader and stronger and a much better fighter, “Just say the word Gavin and I’m gone, I’ll get the fuck out of this city while the rest of you get killed,” he hissed taking a step back from Gavin to look at everyone else who was now watching the pair closely.

“Because believe it or not that is exactly what is going to happen. You haven’t even looked at her numbers Geoff, she’s got over two hundred hands at her disposal while we have a hundred and fifty that can’t even speak to one another. We’re busy teaming up to find locations, which Gavin or Ray could do in their sleep, while all the team we’ve hired sit downstairs in their own groups they’re not gonna act like full units while out in that city, it’ll be every man for themselves.” Michael could feel a lump gripping at his throat as he glanced at each of the remaining team, his gaze landing on Geoff last as he said, “and we’re all gonna die if we don’t come up with a plan tonight.” Geoff looked at him, the anger ebbing in to understanding as he dropped the pencil he’d been using on to the table and slid in to one of the chairs.

Michael sighed, turning back to Gavin,

“Look Gav, I’m sorry Ryan left, maybe I did push him too far… I’m sorry I’ve not been more mindful of you, of all of you, we need to be a team especially with Ryan gone… Please Geoff tell me what needs doing and I’ll get it done,” Michael begged turning away from Gavin’s sad eyes and looking at Geoff again. The boss looked tired, haggard, just about ready to give up, but there was still that spark that pushed him and although it was dim Michael could see that Geoff wasn’t finished yet and that he’d fight until every inch of the city and himself was burnt to the ground.

“You’ve been watching them the most, you know what they can do, get some team list written up, we’ll follow your lead,” Geoff decided, Michael nodded once heading over to the database to start pair together teams that could go up against the likes of Mica’s animal-headed psychopaths.


	28. Chapter 28

The next week was spent preparing and training the various teams as Michael and Geoff broke them up and put them together. It had been divided that in Ryan’s continued absence the twins would take his place, it wasn’t against Mica’s rules for them to have two people joining them since it meant they’d still be equal to her team, this meant that they whole crew went through a rigours training to make sure they could work as a team the way they would if it was Ryan with them. 

It took Gavin the longest to push the thought of Ryan out of his head and the attitude of the twins didn’t help. They were lovely and deadly and attractive, everything that Ryan was except with boobs and vagina rather than a dick, but all together whole concept still made it difficult to understand that they wouldn’t be able to work around and with the rest of the crew the way everyone else did, after all the crew had had years upon centuries of practise to learn how each person fought and the twins only had a week to pick up on five different fighting styles and work out how to incorporate them in to their own style of fighting which was very hands on and close up.

The message from Mica had come a couple days after her broadcast, as Geoff had guessed given the distribution of her team, they were set to fight downtown in the warehouse district. The location was actually that of a large abandoned tire factory, two stories of offices with the ground floor mainly dedicated to storage and machinery, it had originally been two building but after one burnt down in a fire it was decided that one factory was enough to deal with the depleting demand before it fell in to disuse and disrepair before becoming home to countless homeless, drug users, and small gangs. The day itself was that of midnight on Christmas Eve no one had really thought about it until Gavin kicked off that having to kill people on Christmas was messed up even for Mica.

“Fine then, you don’t kill anyone just maim them and we’ll take the fuckers down,” Michael muttered as he fiddled with another bit of wiring from one of the newer bombs he’d been working on. Gavin frowned at him from where he was leaning against a counter beside the other lad. It was only him and Michael in the main base, Geoff and Jack were away with the twins in training while Ray was out on the roof with a group of snipers and wannabes, he’d set out a small course of stuff across the rooftops surrounding their base and was seeing who was the best since certain fights would benefit a lot more from a group half made up of snipers than it would trigger happy suicidals.

“Are you sure that thing is safe to work with in here instead of your workshop?” Gavin asked uneasily watching Michael shake his hands and stretch before bending back over the device with a soldering iron in hand.

“I’ve only had two incidents in my years of doing this Gavin, and both of those only ended in a bit of fire and scorching with some hair loss,” Michael muttered keeping his eyes on the metal beneath him. Gavin was sure that was a lie since he’d managed to set fire to a bunch of stuff yesterday while fiddling with a different incineration device

Gavin could hear shouting down just outside of the doors, growing closer until the twins barged through the doors, terrified that Michael would jump he practically launched sideways earning himself a smirk of Michael as he shook his head and returned to his work.

“It’s a good job you two are loud as fuck before you get in here otherwise this room would be in flames right now,” he chuckled as the pair wandered over to see what he was working on.

“Oh shit sorry Michael, thought you weren’t allowed to do that shit anywhere but the workshop,” Luca, the slightly taller of the pair asked, pushing a neon pink hair back behind her ear while the rest of her short crop hung half way down her cheek.

“Told you,” Gavin muttered wandering back to the computers as the connection bars flashed, letting him know they were ready to connect to the cameras that Gavin knew were set up in and around the warehouse they’d be fighting in. Michael scowled at him throwing a ball of tissue filled with melted metal at him.

“Oh shit Gav, is this where were fighting?” Dana asked leaning on the back of Gavin’s chair pulling him backward slightly.

“Erm yeah, at least it’s where were guessing given the coordinates,” Gavin muttered keeping his eyes on the screens in front of him as he checked through the various connections and mapped out which cameras were actually useful to them. Dana whistled behind him as the greatness of the place became apparent, they’d expected the place to be big but even without it’s second building there was a lot of potential for any one of them to get jumped with all the various hiding spots and blind corners that it boasted.

Gavin worked methodically once Dana and Luca were called away again to get their armour fitted; with four blueprint maps spread beneath him he began clicking through each camera starting at the top and working down through the levels while marking out the viewing range and dead cameras on the blue print sheet. It would be Kdin’s job to help direct them when it came down to the wire, having eyes and ears outside of the fight zone meant that there was always someone with a clear head watching out for them giving everyone else within the fight more time to focus on taking down anyone that came within their radius.

\-------

The day of the fights came sooner than of them could have predicted, after what only felt like a couple days since receiving the broadcast the first teams were on their way to be loaded up and sent to what they expected was their death. Certain teams were out numbered, there had been no preventing that given Mica’s extra numbers and the undoubted police attention that the various wars would cause. Hours ticked by as they edged ever closer to the stating time of midnight and almost everyone dealt with the situation in a different manner.

Those that had families out of the city spent the hours on the phones on computers talking and letting every member of their family know that they were loved while others spent the day in silence, locked away in their own minds and refusing to speak to anyone. Some went about training, getting final practises in with others and covering battle plans, making sure guns and explosives and knifes were clean and safe and sharp; ready to go when the bell tolled. A few continued to socialise however, treating the day like any other and ignoring the mental chaos that was slowly growing around them.  
Luca and Dana were two of those that spent their day in their own heads, training silent and slow almost as though they were meditating, like Tie Chi but with knives.

Meanwhile, the crew did what they usually did, the night before and been spent playing games and drinking, chatting until the conversation quickly wore thin and the inevitability of what was to come drove them all to bed. It was one of the first nights since things had got really bad that they all slept together in the same bed, sharing body heat and blankets as they exchanged chaste kisses and touches that said more than a word ever could. Gavin’s heart hung heavy in his chest as the original couples reconnected, but Michael and Ray had soon dragged him over so that he was squished between the pairs, interlocking the mess of twined legs and fingers at the centre of the bed.

It was the first night that Gavin barely dreamt, of if he did they hadn’t been bad enough to remember. With Geoff spooning his back and Michael’s face centimetres from his own he actually felt grounded and almost whole again even with the thought of their ultimate death looming so closely over them they slept in, waking naturally and practically happy before they remembered what midnight would bring.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so I'm so sorry that this stupid short and pretty much filler, but by the next chapter this story should be officially over. There may be the possibility for an epilogue but I'm not promising anything, depending on how this final chapter turns out I may just leave it there.
> 
> Thank you to everyone that had maintained reading this through the various droughts and those that have been patient enough with me that you've left kudos and bookmarked and left comments, I appreciate every single one of you. 
> 
> I hope you're all well and I'll be back soon, thank you. xoxo


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry to everyone that has been trying to keep up with this especially after I left it at such a shit filler before the big fight and I hope the ending is satisfying to you all... I know that I'm gonna be a lot happier with this one than I was the alternate that you'll never see.

The city rang with screams and sirens as areas were forcefully cleared of the remaining civilians on the lead up to midnight. The drunk and homeless running in all directions as the various animal headed figures waved their guns and fired bullets in to the sky meanwhile police left the gunmen to their own devices focusing their attention on the amount of head to heads that were starting around the city and making sure that everyone within the immediate radius were cleared out of harms way.

They drove in near perfect silence with just the clicking and sliding of guns and magazines as they were checked and loaded before being slotted in to various belts, vests, and bags. Kdin smoke calmly in their ears checking that everyone was could hear him clearly, the only vices breaking through the silence as each person called ‘check, over,’. 

The streets were clear of cars making the drive out to the downtown warehouses easy until they broke the barrier of Mica’s team where people still ran for cover while animal head stared at them with blank eyes from street corners and alleys. Geoff glared back at them, the sheer number chilling him to the bone as he knew that his own teams would soon be facing the same haunting gaze, none of them came after the vehicle or even raised their gun as they moved through the streets each just watching and waiting for the signal that would rain hell throughout the city.

The rundown factory was still when they approached, parking outside and looking over the dimly windows where light flickered softly, a banner hung across the front entrance greeting them in hastily painted letters of purple and green while freshly painted white arrows navigated them toward the centre of the building. Geoff led them, his face a mask of calm while his heart thumped against the inside of his rib cage, Jack walked behind him with Luca and Dana in tow, Gavin was next clutching a pistol in his hand tightly with Michael and Ray padding behind him. Ray held his duffle bag close as they moved through the corridors, taking in every accessible and partially lit staircase as he passed it; his sniper rifle pulled tight to his back.

As they made their way in to the centre of the factory music swept over them, a clear area opened up dotted with candles and bulbs that gave off just enough light to make out the various doorways and staircases that led out and up while ‘ _Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’ echoed eerily through the intercom speakers filling the space with a peace that seemed foreign in the space.  
Tables, wooden boxes, and various scrapes of steel were dotted equally on each side, almost like a paintball arena. _

The crew stood for a second in awe at what had been created as their ‘playing field’ when a clanging on the stairs alerted their attention. There stood Mica, her dark hair had been scraped back in to tight pony tail while her clothing consisted of thick leggings and a long sleeve jacket; a bullet proof vest was pulled tight across her torso and covered by a thick black cloak which swept across the metal staircase as she walked down to the floor.

“Ramsey, it’s greet to see you and your team again, how are things?” she smiled, her eyes scanning across the team.

“Cut the crap Mica, lets get this over with, where’s the rest of your team?” Michael snapped, cutting Geoff off before he could reply.

“Oh patience, patience, Michael its not even midnight yet, and my team is here don’t you worry,” she gestured behind her where six hooded figures were making their way out of door ways down the stairs, “however it doesn’t look like your whole team is here… Where is Haywood?” she asked as her teamed moved in to position behind her.

“He left,” Geoff replied bluntly, feeling Luca and Dana shift uncomfortably at his side. He’d forgotten that this was the first time they were meeting Mica and realising just how deranged she was.

“Oh that is unfortunate, my girl’s were looking forward to playing with him,” she mocked looking to her left as Meg and Ashley removed their hoods smirking at the crew as they failed to hide their reactions.

“That’s okay, Gavin’s still here,” Meg laughed darkly. Gavin felt his empty stomach tense, he wanted to throw up but knew that he couldn’t let them get to him. Despite the past they were his enemies now, however it only became more difficult as the rest of her team dismissed their hoods.

Lindsay, Barbara, and Griffon stood to Mica’s immediate right while Meg, Ashley, and Tina stood on her left. Each of them unclasped their cloaks, letting the cloth pool at their feet, showing of the various artillery they had strewn about their bodies before placing their arms firmly behind their backs. Thick Kevlar covered their chest, arms, and thighs; guns hung from holders on their hips and backs while knives blade were held in holsters on their boots and cuffs at their wrists, each girl was dressed in black leggings and long sleeve shirt with their hair tied tightly at their crown. 

They stood in silence as the first bell in the city tolled to midnight and Mica reached up to her neck, pressed down the button on the microphone there.

“Merry Christmas everyone.”

That was what started it, the first explosions sounded off, rattling the city and bringing in the gunfire as black sky became filled with the flames and lead. The inside of the factory erupted in to the drilling noise of machine guns as the women drew their guns first forcing the crew to scattered behind the various boxes and sheet metal as they scrabbled for their own guns and waited for a break in the women’s onslaught. It came a couple seconds later; magazines running quickly empty as the scattering of feet echoed through the room, Geoff, Michael, and Jack were up first firing shots at those that were still standing and running for cover while Mica and Lindsay ran from the main room disappearing down one of the corridors while the battle raged on behind them.

“Luca, Dana, track those two back down but don’t you dare kill them,” Geoff ordered the twins. They nodded waiting for the cover fire of the rest of the team before running from the room following the echoing of Mica and Lindsay’s footsteps as they ran.

With five on five remaining the fight seemed to become more personal for some, it became apparent that Griffon and Geoff were clearly aiming for each other while Meg and Ashely chose to ran hell upon the guard that Gavin and Michael had managed to squish behind leaving dints in the metal as the bullets bounced and skittered off of metal and cement floors sending clouds of dust in to the air.

It became hard to tell whose shots were who’s after a while, breaks of one team blending with the instant start of another team firing again, until one shot echoed above the rest, followed by shouts and screams as Tina hit the ground a bullet hole perfectly placed in the centre of her forehead.

“Up on the walk way!” Barbara yelled already firing up. Michael glanced around, sure enough Ray had managed to sneak away in the rain of bullets and get up to the landing that circled the entire second floor. The crew took the distraction and shifted around, moving closer to the girls before letting out another round of bullets and giving Ray time to move position.

\-------

“Give it up Mica,” Luca gasped as she blocked another of Mica’s lunges. The pair had split up, leaving Luca with Mica while Dana went after Lindsay.

“Why did you side with them, you should have joined us while you had the chance,” Mica questioned rhetorically, moving quick enough that she caught Luca’s wrist and managed to twist her arm around her back pulling Luca tight against her chest, “you could have been great,” she taunted pressing tight against Luca's back so her breath tickled across her ear.

“I am great,” Luca spat flipping one knife from her wrist and sending it through the kevlar and in to Mica’s side. Mica cried out in shock, releasing Luca and pushing her way, her hand reaching for the short blade that was still lodged in her side.

\-------

Soon after Tina fell the explosives started, shrapnel grenades and Molotov cocktails smashed and crashed, shaking the foundations and supports of the factory as pieces of metal, wood, glass, stone flew and skittered around the room. Flames danced across the floor setting alight to the various boxes, some exploded with tiny amounts of gun power that had been placed inside of them in capsules while others simply burned filling the room with heat and a smoke that clogged in your lungs and throat.

Michael got sick enough of it at one point that he threw a complete grenade, aiming blindly toward the woman and laughing as her heard their scrambles for different cover. That was what took Barbara and Griffon down, their insides scattered across the floor and what remained of the metal plating.

The downside to the grenade is that it had sent the remaining two running, however the slight pause allowed them to properly dispose of at least Barbara’s body, ensuring that her head was well away from the body before setting the larger pieces of her remains on the already growing fires.

Meg and Ashley had made it clear that they wanted Ryan, in their own twisted way they too wanted to play games like Mica, but he hadn’t shown which meant that Gavin would have to make a satisfactory second prize.  
Now with three of them dead, Mica and Lindsay still fighting; giving Luca and Dana the run around, Meg and Ashley knew they’d have to act as back up for their boss, take out as many of Ramsey’s team as they could before they got to Mica. They should have known not to worry about Lindsay or their boss though as the next time they saw Mica she was close to covered in blood, deep red streaks covering her face; hands coated like a set of painted gloves as she clutched at pink hair, swinging Luca’s head back and forth as she walked down the corridor toward the camp spot she’d created.

Much like Kdin having eyes and ears on the team through the factory’s still operating cameras Mica had done the same, only instead of sitting out of the fight she was practically in the centre of the action even if it was a few feet below it. Locked down in the security room beneath the factory Mica could see and hear everything through the cameras that were already built in to the building and those that her team had personally set up to give her an extra advantage, there was barely an inch that Mica couldn’t see while she watched Ramsey split up his team sending the three lads one way while he and Pattillo went another. Lindsay was just pressing through the spinal cord of Dana when Mica let her know about the crew’s movement.

“Okay, I’ll get moving then, should I leave this one as a present?” Lindsay asked, her voice dark as she nudged the now free moving head with her toe.

“Of course, I want them to know we brought the right tools for the job,” Mica said a smirk sliding across her lips as she watched Lindsay give the body a final kick before walking down the corridor and turning in to one of the offices that lead toward the loading bay, great bangs and gun fire echoing down the halls toward her.

\-------

Michael and Gavin were trapped, stuck in one of the management offices close to the loading bay, Meg and Ashley had wasted no time in making to sure to pin them in by activating the traps that Michael had set behind them which meant the only way out was through the door that Meg and Ashley had come through on the other side of the yard.

They fended them off as well as they could, using what little was left of the walls as cover when the shattering of glass caught their attention before another bottle flew over their heads and shattered against the opposite wall accompanied by a laughter that shook both boys to the bone as fire began to spread across the floor and wall.

“Fuck sake, of course you and Ryan fucked a pair of pyros!” Michael cursed, shuffling closer to the wall away from the fire as he rooted in his bag sick of the amount of ethanol the pair seemed to have on hand in order to create the molotovs that were raining down on them.

“You’re one to talk, you fucked her second in command!” Gavin spat back firing several shots over his wall.

“Fair point,” Michael shrugged, pushing himself on to his knees and passing one a smoke grenade to Gavin, “throw that on three and I’ll follow it with these two as we run out,” he said. Gavin nodded, preparing himself to run. As Michael counted down to three Gavin pulled the loop and released the spoon sending the grenade flying in to the centre of the yard, Gavin ran out first as the high pitched whistle hit his ears, Michael pushing him down behind a wall half way between their cover and the women, throwing two more explosives of his own design (shrapnel grenades that pretty much shredded anything in their way) the explosions blended with the whistling as it continued to rattle in their ear and the screams of the two women as various pieces of metal and glass punctured through the air and their skin.

“You fuck!” Meg screeched firing through the last of her magazine after them as they scrambled through the door a couple feet away. Every bullet missed, her arm shaking and blood spattered as it fell in to her lap, small pieces of metal sticking out from her shoulder and arm while another slightly larger piece was embedded firmly in her calf. She groaned as she moved, yanking out the piece of metal and rolling on to her hands and knees, Ashley was down, a piece of metal sticking from her eye that had easily become lodged in her brain. Meg grimaced slightly shuffling over to the body of her lover and wrapped her fingers around the shard, ignoring how it cut in to her skin as she tugged it out, gagging slightly as the whole eyeball came with it before she threw it to the side hearing is bonce along the rubble that the bomb had caused along with the echoing groans that the various bombs had caused having taken out several of the already rusted and rotting supports; the ceiling creaking as it threatened to finally give in.

“Come on then,” Meg muttered ignoring the pain in her own leg and arm as she pulled Ashely in to a seated position and dragged her from the yard as the first lot of wood beginning to crack and splinter them after. She ran in to Lindsay a little way down, handing Ashley to her to be hidden while she went to find Gavin and Michael.

“Be careful out there,” Lindsay said her voice level as she hoisted Ashely on to her shoulder fireman style.

“Always am,” Meg smiled, hands tightening on the strap of the explosive bag that she had crossed across her body.

\-------

“Found Ashley, nice of who ever did it to call out that she was down,” Michael scoffed as he looked over the unmoving body and detached head as they in a sticky red puddle in the centre of one corridor; the surrounding cameras shot through which he guessed was why Kdin hadn’t called it in.

“Wasn’t me, I’m still near the main area,” Ray called back.

“Wasn’t either of us either,” Geoff finalised as he and Jack swapped confused looks.

“Well someone definitely got her while she was down, completely beheaded and still full of shrapnel bits also missing an eye,” Michael clarified, turning away to follow Gavin down an opposing corridor back toward the main area. They’d been wandering about following dead end after dead end of ‘clues’ to try and track down the now remaining three women, Meg, Lindsay, and Mica, were all staying very well hidden throughout the factory’s remains, blood hand prints and the occasional set of footsteps driving them insane.

Gavin and Michael were still going after Meg, following and carefully disarming the traps that Meg was laying behind her, and had happened to stumble upon Ashley’s body by chance when they decided to loop around an already blown out section of the factory that seemed completely impassable. Michael figured that it was likely for one of Mica’s team to have done it given the extent of her injuries, Geoff probably would have felt her pass if he hadn’t already been expecting various pains and bullet wounds to be happening. If it had been the missing eye that had took her down it would take a while before she was back on her feet and useful again, better to put her down completely that have to have someone babysitting her.

But Meg wouldn’t have done it, it would have been either Mica or Lindsay. The thought made Michael’s blood run cold as he and Gavin stepped in to centre of the main room, the landing circling them with little cover to dodge a flying bullet. They hoped that they could lure Meg in to the open area. Even if she ended up with the higher ground, Michael and Gavin should still be fine since Ray had got himself among the rafters with his sniper rifle.

“So what do we do now boi?” Gavin asked, watching the landing nervously, his gun clutched in his hand.

“We wait for a few minutes, see if she shows up, then either we shoot her or Ray does,” Michael said, trying to keep his voice calm despite the knots forming in his stomach.

“Don’t worry Vav, X-Ray’s got your back,” Ray said over the mic, his voice light-hearted and eyes trained on the various entrances surrounding them.

They were working on a guess and a hope as Michael set about planting small smoke alerts on each of the doorways, leaving one empty as their escape route. The plan was that if Meg or Lindsay or Mica decided to show up on the ground floor they’d know in an instant and hopefully be able to at least maim them before they knew what was going on.

As it happened they didn’t need the alerts. By the time Michael had set the last one and was stood back with Gavin alerting the rest of the crew to what he’d set up Meg seemed to jump from one of the offices on the second floor, her gun drawn and firing before she even had Gavin and Michael in her sight giving the pair enough time to jump behind what little cover they had while Ray twisted and took her down.  
A single shot to the side of her head did it, her body going limp and slumping against the landing rail before sliding on to the metal walk way.

“Bloody hell!” Gavin gasped, pushing himself up from the floor and dusting of his shirt half-heartedly, “Nice shooting X-Ray,” Gavin grinned throwing a thumbs up to the rafters where he could just about see the glint of pink that was Ray’s favourite gun. Michael let out a single laugh as he climbed the stairs and approached the body, letting Gavin hold the bag while he searched every inch of her clothing and holders for ammo and weaponry passing what he found to Gavin. His main interest was the explosive bag that hugged tight to her back, covering what looked like a large machete, leafing through he found a couple of corked Molotovs ready to go, a small selection of explosives that he’d personally designed as well as some that seemed to have been slightly altered, alongside a couple regular smoke and frag grenades.

“Here take these, and look that way,” Michael ordered handing Gavin the explosive bag and pulling the machete from it’s holder on Meg’s back. Gavin’s face paled slightly as he took the bag and turned around heading down toward their escape exit rather than staying on the platform. Michael watched him go, taking a deep breath as he turned back to Meg’s body and lined up the machete with the back of her neck.

Despite being immortal there was one sure way to kill them for good, splitting the spinal cord at the cervical section completely was one way to keep someone alive and yet paralysed from the neck down, however if you apply enough pressure to slice through the neck effectively detaching the person’s head they’d never come back. That’s exactly what Michael did, lining up the blade between the third and fourth joint on the back of her neck her pushed, grimacing slightly as the blade scraped between the bones, hitting the main veins and failing at not getting blood on his jeans. Within seconds the blade hit the floor, scrapping metal on metal as he pulled it and then kicked the head away from the body slightly. He swallowed the bile in his throat, cleaned off the knife, and followed after Gavin, neither one speaking about what they’d just done other than letting Geoff and Jack know that Meg wasn’t going to be a problem any longer.

“That good to hear lads, if you can track down Lindsay then we’re almost done here, we found Mica,” Geoff said fighting the smugness in his voice as he held the gun up to Mica’s head.

\-------

Mica hadn’t put up any form of fight, and that’s what was worrying Jack as he and Geoff held the boss at gun point. Mica’s mouth was still twisted in to a sick smirk, like she still thought she could win while a barrel was sitting between her eyes, her elbows still resting on the arms of the office chair as she barely raised her hands in surrender.

“We’ll split up and scout her out; start heading towards you,” Michael said giving Gavin a quick nod as they went their separate ways, Ray moving from his position in the rafters to start working his way around the second floor. Kdin let them know where Mica’s hiding spot had been.

“Beneath the factory with the rats, rather fitting for her lot don’t you think,” Kdin joked, still scanning through the cameras to try and track down Lindsay, but he hadn’t seen her since she’d met up with Meg and moved Ashley in to an area that he couldn’t make out, running back up the same corridor empty handed and then disappearing in to the woodwork. He’d let the team know of this when they were still on Meg’s tail since she’d seemed happy to stay in Kdin’s line of sight allowing him to give almost constant updates to Michael, Gavin, and Ray.

“Come on Mica, face it, you’ve lost,” Jack said his voice calm. Mica cocked her head at him, a sly grin playing along her lips while the same sick glaze covered her eyes.

“Oh I never lose,” Mica said grinning as the first lot of explosions rattled through the foundations, “if I’m going down, I’m taking your lot with me,” she laughed, pulling a pistol from the back of her chair and firing a shot in to Geoff’s knee. But Jack was quick firing off three shots as Geoff crumpled slightly at the pain, hitting Mica twice in the shoulder and once in the chest before moving to grab the gun form her hand. The hits barely registered with Mica however as the explosions grew above them, causing dust and plaster to fall from the ceiling. Geoff could just about hear the three lads over the explosions, each of them yelling before falling silent, their audios turning to nothing but static as the building collapsed on top of them.

Jack stared at Mica as her eyes flitted across the ceiling, watching as cracks appeared in the cement and pebble sized chucks began to littered the floor around them.

“How ironic that you both thought yourself above me and yet here we are about to share the same tomb,” Mica screeched rocking back and forth in her chair excitedly, ignoring the blood and pain seeping from her shoulder. But not spotting the gun barrel pointed at her head until Geoff fired his shot, slumping back against Jack again the explosions rumbled to a halt.

“That’s one way to shut her up I guess,” Jack mumbled, pulling Geoff up against one wall to try and check his leg before Geoff shrugged him off, urging Jack to go and check the stairwell they’d come down only to find the door partially replaced with rubble, effectively trapping them inside despite his attempts to tug it loose. They were hoping on Kdin now, to get them out, until that happened they were stuck, without communication, and without extra ammunition, the lads unconscious and trapped beneath layers of rubble and twisted steel... All that was left was to hope and pray that someone got them out before they ran out or bullet to keep Mica quiet and 'dead'.

Everything hurt, everything was also way to bright even though Gavin knew his eyes were shut. There was a beeping to his right and softness beneath his head, but his legs felt trapped like they were being held down by something that wasn’t hurting him it was just a little too tight to be comfortable.  
He didn’t want to open his eyes, despite the tightness he was actually kinda comfy like he was floating on cloud or something. He tried to think back, the last thing he completely remembered was wandering down one of the corridors in the factory, he’d heard a loud bang and crack above him, then all around him, everything was hazy after that. ' _Did the factory collapse? Where were the others? Were they experiencing this too tight cloud state? Were they alive? Were they safe?_ '

Everything was white and chrome, too clean to feel like home with a sofa in the corner, someone was lay there wearing a hoodie backwards to protect their face from the light. Gavin kept his eyes on him, as he tried to wiggled from the blanket that was tight over his legs muttering under his breath as something got caught and tugged at the cotton.

“Ahh fuck,” he hissed trying to tug the blanket up to try and see what was caught. The person on the couch shifted, reaching up to pull the hood from his face to reveal a thick red beard.

“Woah, woah, Gavin stop stop, calm down you’re fine,” he babbled, jumping up and crossing the room to Gavin. Gavin paused, relaxing slightly as Jack came and stood beside him, tugging the blanket from where it had been stuffed up the mattress.

“Where are the others Jack?” Gavin asked, pushing the blanket of his legs, and hissing as a thread got caught on what he found was a staple that wasn’t completely covered. As Jack moved to fix it he explained.

The building had collapsed, bombs left and set through out the building’s interstitial space were remote detonated collapsing the building from the outside in. Since Geoff, Jack, and Mica had been in the basement when they were set off they just got trapped there but otherwise were unharmed. Michael, Ray, and Gavin however got the full force of it. Ray had been on the second floor at the time of the explosion, so while he hadn’t had a lot fall on top of him he’d fallen on top of a lot as the building went down. Michael and Gavin however had been on the first floor, the pair getting crushed beneath layers of metal and stone, they were lucky to be found and pulled out as quickly as they were.

“You’re lucky to still have a leg honestly, it couldn’t heal with a metal pipe through it,” Jack half joked, handing Gavin his coffee from the machine in the corner of the room.

“So Michael and Ray are okay?” Gavin asked, fearful of the answer.

“They’re okay, Ray’s been up for a couple days now, his was mostly internal stuff so he’s just sleeping a lot but he insisted on having a bed moved in to Michael’s room since he wasn’t so lucky,” Jack sighed, “Don’t know how you escaped with just a busted leg and some internals, Michael’s pelvis literally shattered, we had almost ever surgon we could get trying to fix him so he’s pretty much part cyborg now, but he’ll be okay.”

“So why’s he not woken up then?” Gavin asked, scared that Michael could be a lot worse than Jack was letting on. But Jack was honest, he always had been so Gavin trusted him when he replied.

“They’re just keeping him sedated while his body keeps healing… I mean do you honestly think Michael would be staying still if he was awake right now?”

“No he’d be yelling the place down, wondering what happened and if we got Mica and Lindsay. Fuck! Did we get them?” Gavin asked, shocking himself after realising he’d forgotten they were the reason he was even here now.

“We got them don’t worry, when me and Geoff got pulled out they pulled her with us, think I fired almost thirty bullets in to that woman’s head before I heard people yelling from above us,” Jack chuckled, remembering how he and Geoff had taken turns firing another bullet in to Mica’s skull every time she started to come round or they noticed one drop to the floor. He was pretty sure that there was that much trauma she’d never completely come back from it, but that was saying something when she was already psychotic to begin with.

“So how did we even get out?” Gavin asked after thinking it over for a few minutes. Kdin could have sent people in, but they barely had any hands left and from what Jack had been saying it seemed like they’d been found pretty quick. Jack wouldn’t look at him, he was staring intently at his half empty cup like it held the answers to the universe while absentmindedly chewing his lip, a sign that he was nervous.

“It was Ryan,” he finally said. Gavin didn’t know how to react, he thought Ryan would come back but where was he now? Given Gavin’s silence Jack continued, “Ryan managed to track where I fight was taking place, it was him that took down Ashely after confronting Lindsay, but he took out a lot of the cameras which was why Kdin never managed to spot him. He was gonna leave when he heard the Geoff and me found Mica but spotted Lindsay making a run for it after setting off the explosives.”

“So where is he now?” he asked, feeling the lump beginning to swell in his throat as he glared as his barely touched coffee.

“Trust me, Geoff gave him an ear full once you guys were getting sorted in medical, said that he couldn’t keep leaving and coming back when he pleased and that if he still wasn’t sure then he should leave completely…” a knock at the door cut him off before it was tentatively pushed open, the figure looking toward the couch before swivelling to look at the bed.

Tired, blue eyes locked with Gavin’s as Ryan stepped further in to the room, stopping dead like a dear in the headlights. Everything seemed to freeze in time as Gavin stared back at him, he was happy and annoyed and overwhelmed and could feel his heart swelling three sizes too big as the love for this nerdy assassin began to pummel at the organ all over again.

“Hi Gav,” Ryan said, tears brimming his eyes as he took in the fading bruises that still cluttered his face, and the bandaged areas where the metal piping had destroyed his leg.

Gavin didn’t think, he just acted. Ignoring the coffee as it burnt across his feet and stained the sheets of his bed. Ignoring the screaming of his muscles and joints and pain in his leg as he put weight on it. Ignoring the fact that he was only dressed in a night shirt and instead threw himself at Ryan, his arms wrapping around the older man’s neck and enjoying the tightness that came with Ryan’s arms around his back, the crushed lips and slight metal taste as he kissed Ryan desperately.

Once he came back to thinking Ryan had placed him down, still holding a lot of his weight as Gavin ran his fingers through Ryan’s hair tugging it so that Ryan’s forehead touched his own.

“You’re never leaving again,” Gavin mumbled keeping Ryan’s eye contact as he smiled.

“Never.” Ryan replied, cupping Gavin’s jaw lightly and kissing him again.

“Alright that’s all cute and everything but Gavin if your standing, use the crutches and Ryan help me with these sheets now that he’s ruined them,” Jack called outside of their bubble making the pair laugh as they separated. Gavin hobbling over to where a set of crutches were leaning against the couch while Ryan was quickly covered in stained sheets.

\-------

Over the next few weeks everything slowly returned to a sickeningly domestic level. Michael woke up and was told that while he couldn’t walk for the time being he was allowed to move about in a wheel chair and so spent several day’s trying to convince Ray to push him around before the younger finally gave in and took to also wearing rollerblades around the base.

And as a result of Gavin also not being allowed to put a lot of pressure on his leg ended up getting piggy backs almost everywhere, mainly by Ryan since the pair seemed to be glued to each other’s side… Ryan was pretty damn serious about the NEVER leaving again part.

Geoff continued to turn Ryan’s abandonment in to joke after his debrief which brought up some interesting things.

For one, Ryan never completely left. He’d stayed in Achievement City still very close to the base in a one bed apartment linked in to the base’s file system so he was always up to date with what was going on.   
Second, he hadn't lived alone. Once Ryan got the information about the fights and where they’d be taking place he called in a couple of guys that used to help Geoff come up up with his own games (like the ‘K.I.N.G’ one Gavin had been forced to participate in on his first day). Jeremy was a short guy, 5”4 which didn’t go unnoticed and got him labelled ‘Little J’ very quickly while Matt was tall and the human personification of a garbage disposal. Back when Geoff had first started hiring him, he’d long hair, however after getting a call for a decoy mission he’d had to shave the lot off giving him a Hisenberg look. The pair managed to fit in fairly quickly with the rest of the crew.

Meanwhile Geoff and Jack began setting up their new home. With the gambling district being rebuilt past its former scum-of-the-earth days they decided to set up their new home close by on it’s east side, set back in the suburbs. A large house that wouldn’t look out of place given their status was erected, made of smooth sandstone with a large porch and backyard complete with a large pool and hot tub. Six large bedrooms each with on-suite (although most rooms slept two or more each night), a huge kitchen with an island that was open plan to the dining room and an arch that led in to a comfortable living room with a 100inch television that hung above a range of consoles and shelf upon shelf of various games.

It was hard to believe, if you ever looked in, that you were watching six of the most dangerous men in the world. Men that had faced losing almost everything, including their lives a hundred times over, and still come out on top and ruling from comfort while the madness that they had faced sat six feet under their base in the centre of Achievement City.

Mica had been left to rot in an unground chamber, no food, no water, no light, her madness consumed her until her body was too weak to even try and repair what the slow torture was doing to her body. Geoff and Jack, as well as the other bosses Burnie, Matt, Joel, and Gus, were the only ones that knew that she was down there and that was how it remained with every one in a blissful ignorance believe that she was dead and gone.

In the meantime every thing else seemed easy, with the new year came new teams and crews. Some joined up with Fake AH rebuilding what Mica had destroyed, while other still attempted to fight against it, pushing their way in to the city before being beat in to their place by its rulers. Even the police seemed to take a backseat, the actual government still trying to rebuild what Mica's 'games' had caused and none of them questioned when a hefty donation was given from an anonymous donator. Banks were still robbed and liquor stores held up, everything had returned back to it's usual chaotic balance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's it, its over. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed it and sorry again for all the large gaps between chapters especially this last one. I want you to know that I am so thankful for every comment and encouragement I have had throughout this story and to you the reader THANK YOU! Just seeing the numbers that this piece has gotten has been the main reason I kept it going and is probably the reason that I continue writing on to my next piece (probably going to be more original characters thought, I'm think female or non-binary gayness).
> 
> So yes I hope you've enjoyed it and that this was a nice wrap up for you, I know I'm a lot happier with it and hey you can't escape the domestic, I've always felt that despite their big names the Fake AH Crew would all be absolute domestic nerds at heart, with Jack baking pies and cakes and Geoff hosting a barbecue while Ryan sits reading some sort of manga in the living room and Michael's screaming at Gavin while Ray destroys them in a video game as usual.
> 
> Okay I'm gonna stop babbling now, so bye, thank you again, I love you and I'll see you soon :D xoxo


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